The Pregnancy Chronicles
by Greekchic
Summary: Ginny Potter thought she had seen it all. Until she found out she was pregnant. Buckle up, it's going to be a bumpy ride to parenthood. COMPLETE.
1. The Beginning

** The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_November 2004 _

_Fitchburg, Massachusetts, USA_

Even though Ginny Potter had only been in the United States for a week, she found she was enjoying the country immensely. Massachusetts was a beautiful—albeit cold—state with an extremely distinctive accent. Ginny had always been under the impression that Americans all had the same nasally accent and she was quick to figure out that she had been sorely mistaken.

Ginny had always been fascinated with differing accents and this so-called 'Bostonian' accent was no different. Words ending in 'er' were dropped to include an 'a' instead. Any 'o' was replaced with 'aw.' 'R's were added to words for no reason at all. She had tried to imitate it, much to the delight of her teammates, but she could not successfully master the accent without sounding utterly ridiculous. "You sound awful," laughed Georgia Delaney, one of Ginny's fellow Chasers. "You need to get out more and interact with people to make it sound more legitimate."

And today that was exactly what Ginny was doing.

After a week of relentless practices and an exhausting match against the Fitchburg Finches, Gwenog Jones had allowed her team a free day to relax before they returned to England. Even though Ginny loved Quidditch she had been looking forward to this relaxing day, as she wanted to travel to both the Muggle and Wizarding Boston and buy some souvenirs for her family.

_Family, _Ginny thought to herself as she dressed for the day. _I wonder what I should get them. I should get Dad something from Muggle Boston. He would like that. Hermione would like a book and maybe Ron would like something Quidditch related. So would Teddy. And what should I get Harry? _

Her musings were interrupted by a sharp knock on the door. "Hey Gin? Are you ready?"

"Just about," Ginny remarked as she sat down on the hotel bed and shoved her feet into a pair of boots. "Come in, I'm sure you've nearly wet yourself in anticipation."

There was a burst of laughter before the door opened on its own and in stepped Elizabeth Gold, the Harpies Keeper.

"Nice hair Ginners," Elizabeth laughed before she playfully mussed up Ginny's hair.

Ginny stuck her tongue out at Elizabeth and blew her a raspberry.

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "That's real mature Ginners. How old are you again? 5 or 23?"

"Physically I'm 23," Ginny said as she finished putting on her boots. "But sometimes, I'm mentally a 5 year old."

"No kidding," Elizabeth said as she sat behind Ginny so she could braid her hair. "No, no, I'm doing your hair today. Last time you tried to fix your hair it ended up looking like shit." Elizabeth ran her fingers through the long, unruly red tresses before expertly starting to braid.

Ginny rolled her eyes but didn't argue. She was hopeless when it came to taming her hair and she usually just threw it up into a ponytail.

"I'm _knackered_," Elizabeth yawned as she added more hair into the braid. "My whole body aches too. I hope we never play this bloody team again. I thought Puddlemere played dirty but these damn Finches were relentless."

Ginny couldn't help but agree. Normally, the Harpies didn't play American teams unless they made it through to the World Cup but the Harpies captain, Gwenog Jones, and the Finches captain had a "friendly" rivalry that allowed the two teams to play each other.

The Harpies had assumed that they would have an easy win over the Finches and the women had wondered why on earth Gwenog was making them practice so hard. It was only until the match started did the team realize why Gwenog had been relentless. The Finches were good—crazy good. Not only that but they played dirty too. However, the grueling practices had paid off and the Harpies had only lost by a narrow margin. It wasn't until later that the team discovered that the Finches were the best Quidditch team in the United States League, having clinched the US League Cup seven times. Moreover, most of the players from the American National Quidditch Team were former Finches too.

"I'll be glad to go home," Elizabeth continued as she searched for an elastic to secure Ginny's braid. "I miss Tom and I miss my own bed too. These hotel beds just aren't cutting it for me."

Ginny touched her braid to make sure everything was in order before standing up and applying a quick coat of mascara to her eyelashes. She generally wasn't a fan of make up and generally wore as little as possible. "Are you ready to go?" Elizabeth asked impatiently, bouncing on the bed. "C'mon Potter, we don't have all day."

"Alright, alright, I'm ready. Don't get your knickers in a twist."

xxxxxx

Five hours later, Ginny found herself having a marvelous time with Elizabeth. Wizarding Boston had been fantastic and now they were heading towards Muggle Boston. She had purchased a few souvenirs—mostly for the Quidditch obsessed Ron and Teddy and hoped to find more in Muggle Boston.

Elizabeth had already purchased her souvenirs as her family was a lot smaller than Ginny's. She had found a mug at a local store that screamed expletives whenever the glass became half empty. It had amused both women and Elizabeth bought it on the spot, saying that her husband would appreciate it.

"I have half a mind to use this cup at the restaurant we go to for dinner," Elizabeth said. "Can you imagine the look on the faces of the Muggles when they hear a cup curse at them?"

"I'm sure we would be kicked out of the restaurant," Ginny giggled as they shouldered their way through the heavy crowds of the North End.

"It would be worth it," Elizabeth declared as they passed by some Italian restaurants and bakeries. "I have half a mind to stop into one of these bakeries and just buy up the entire store. You think if I gave a bunch of those tiramisus to Gwenog she'd forgive us for mucking up the match? I'm not exactly thrilled with the prospect of running laps at practice."

Ginny winced and shook her head. Even though their captain had a soft spot for sweets, nothing would deter her from punishing her team.

xxxxxx

The familiar sensation of someone yanking Ginny from behind the sensation reminded the redhead that she was soon to be returning home by a Portkey. She personally couldn't stand Portkeys. They always made her feel dizzy and nauseous, even though she had used them numerous times throughout her life. It didn't help that she still couldn't get the hang of landing on her two feet whenever she used a Portkey.

Ginny's feet slammed into the earth and the sudden return to solid ground caused her to lose her balance, pitching backwards. Thankfully, Elizabeth who knew all about Ginny's aversion to Portkeys saved her.

"Gotcha," the brunette laughed into Ginny's ear as she righted her.

"Thanks Liz," Ginny said gratefully as she dusted herself off. Taking her minimized luggage out of her pocket she returned it to its proper size, said goodbye to her teammates and Apparated home.

The familiar smell of cinnamon comforted Ginny as she Apparated into her living room with a loud crack. She inhaled deeply and sighed happily. There really was no place like home.

Glancing at the clock, Ginny noticed that she only had an hour until Harry came home and she wanted to surprise him. With what though? Did she want to cook him dinner? Ginny quickly nixed that thought with a derisive snort. She was a decent cook (much better than Hermione at least) but no one could ever compare to the culinary expertise of Molly Weasley.

_Hmmm, _Ginny thought to herself as she Banished her luggage upstairs to her bedroom. _Maybe we can go out to eat. Or get take away. Oh, what is the name of that Muggle pizza place that Hermione took me to a month ago? Damn. _

Cursing her inability to remember important things like pizza joints, Ginny made her way upstairs to unpack because she knew that if she didn't do it now she never would end up doing it.

The hour passed by quickly as Ginny sorted clothes and put her toiletries away and just as she finished stowing her bag away she heard a familiar 'crack'.

_Harry. _

Her heart in her throat, Ginny stealthily made her way down the stairs and watched as her husband took his shoes off near the closet and shrugged his robes off. She had missed him more than anything and even after two years of marriage she still got butterflies in her stomach whenever she saw or thought about him.

Clearing her throat, Ginny got off the steps and said loudly, "hi Harry."

Her husband whirled around; obviously unaware that someone else was in his house. His eyes fell on Ginny and he breathed her name before the redhead found herself in his arms, her face buried into his shoulder.

"I missed you," she said softly as her hands clutched the material of his shirt. "Next time I go to America, you're coming with me."

Harry chuckled and Ginny pulled away just enough so that she could gaze at his face. Or, more like gaze _up _at his face. Harry was quite tall and unfortunately, Ginny had inherited her mother's height.

Cupping his cheek, Ginny stared into his bright green eyes and suddenly; she felt a different hunger emerging. All ideas of take away were banished from her mind as she untucked Harry's shirt. Why would she want food when she had her husband right in front of her?

Almost as if he could read her mind, Harry swept Ginny up into his arms and pressed a searing kiss to her lips. "I really did miss you," he murmured.

Ginny nodded, not really caring to talk right now. There were other more important things to be done, like taking his shirt off.

Her impatience must have been clear to Harry because not even a few moments later he was kissing her and pushing her towards the bedroom. Ginny smiled to herself as Harry kicked the bedroom door shut.

Oh yeah, she _definitely _missed him.

xxxxxx

**I'm baaaaaack.**

**Yes, I'm quite aware it has been three years since I last posted anything, I **_**know. **_**I'm a bad person but life gets in the way and I got bored of writing and yeah. But the positive part is, this is going to be a multi-chapter story and I have most of it outlined so hooray! **

**Also, if the ending of this chapter seems weird and awkward to you, sorry! I'm not exactly comfortable or familiar writing people trying to get it on so this is the best you'll get. **

**I will try my damndest to update as soon as possible. But of course, reviews make me want to update **_**faster**_** (hint hint).**


	2. Month One

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_December 2004_

"You sure this place is any good?" Ginny asked Hermione hesitantly as they entered the Japanese restaurant in Muggle London. "Raw fish doesn't sound particularly appetizing or appealing."

"It's fantastic," Hermione said as they waited for the hostess to seat them. "My mum took me here about a month ago or so. I've been _dying _to take someone with me."

"I'm guessing Ron refused?"

Hermione rolled her eyes and pushed her busy hair away from her face. "If it isn't deep fried or your mother's cooking, he won't try it. I don't understand. The man is like a vacuum cleaner when it comes to food and yet he won't even try sushi."

"Again," Ginny said as she eyed the sushi bar, feeling slightly revolted. "Raw fish doesn't sound appetizing or appealing."

"Sushi isn't _all _raw fish. That's sashimi. I promise that you'll like sushi. It's really healthy for you and it's really good." The hostess returned and the two women followed her to their table. Sitting down, both witches ordered their drinks and glanced at the menu.

Ginny was overwhelmed by all the food on the menu. A lot of the offerings had ingredients in there that Ginny had never heard before. Growing up, Ginny had only feasted on her mother's cooking or Hogwarts food, which was typical English meals. Sushi was a whole new playing field for her…

"Why don't you get California rolls?" Hermione said busily as she scratched down a mark on a piece of paper. Ginny craned her head to look and saw that this paper had all the different sushi offerings. "It has avocado, cucumber, crab and rice, obviously. You can't even taste the crab," Hermione said as she saw Ginny's face screw up. "It's good. Just _try _it."

Ginny stuck out her tongue but relented. She watched as Hermione chose bluefish tuna sashimi and seaweed salad as her entree along with an appetizer of edamame. Ginny wasn't even sure what the hell edamame was until Hermione explained it to her and even then, it didn't sound remotely appetizing. However, when it came to the table Ginny had no choice but to sample the soy beans and she was quick to find out that she really did like them.

Hermione watched Ginny eat the beans smugly. "Told you that you would like them," she said. "I'm telling you, you just got to try them. That is one thing that I will enforce with my future children. They have to at least try one bite of everything that is put in front of them. I don't want them to turn up their noses at okra or broccoli just because it smells or looks funny."

Ginny didn't have the heart to tell Hermione that she was severely underestimating the resiliency of children. _Especially _when it came to food. Bill liked to tell Ginny about how she went on a food strike for two days when she was three because she refused to eat the boiled cabbage that her mother had set in front of her.

Instead, Ginny decided to change the subject. "Speaking of children," Ginny said teasingly as she put down an empty edamame pod. "When are you and Ron going to have kids?"

Hermione flashed Ginny a very sour look. "You sound like my mum," she accused.

"Hey, for your information, I'm being hounded by my mother too. She keeps dropping hints about how much she would _love _another grandchild. My mum is baby hungry, I swear. She has Victoire and little Molly so far. Plus, she has pretty much adopted Teddy as her grandson. _And _Angelina is going to give birth in two months. I'm hoping that will satisfy her for the time being."

"I'm an only child," Hermione reminded the redhead. "My mum's been hinting ever since Ron proposed. Both my parents want grandchildren. A lot of their friends already have grandchildren so I think it's almost like a biological clock is ticking for them. They just don't understand that I don't want children right now. I'll be married a year next month; I would like to enjoy life with my husband before we decide to add to our family."

Ginny understood completely. She and Harry had discussed the possibility of having children very early on in their engagement and they agreed that they both wanted to wait a little bit. Ginny's Quidditch career was just taking off and selfish as it sounded, she didn't want a baby to mar her chances of playing.

Soon, their food arrived and Ginny stared at her plate, questioning if it was smart to eat the rolls.

"Go on," Hermione said as she ate her seaweed salad. "Try some."

So Ginny did. And she found that sushi _wasn't _as bad as she thought it would be. In fact, she actually liked it a lot.

"This is good," she admitted.

Hermione looked proud of herself as she smugly told Ginny, "I told you so."

The rest of lunch passed by uneventfully with Ginny even trying some of Hermione's entrée. Ginny found she didn't really care for sashimi and she spit out her bite in her napkin, taking a long drink of water to try and drown the taste out. "I don't know how you eat that," she said as she ate another edamame, as the water didn't get rid of the fishy taste.

When the bill arrived, Ginny dutifully paid for the meal. She and Hermione liked to get lunch together at least twice a month and they would take turns paying the bill. Pushing their chairs in, the women wrapped themselves up in their scarves and jackets, not ready to go outside and face the cold weather.

"I have to get back to work," Hermione sighed as she looked at the festive Christmas decorations that adorned the windows of the sushi restaurant. "I need to finish Christmas shopping too, for that matter."

Hearing Hermione say that reminded Ginny that she too needed to finish her shopping but the thought of spending hours winding through stores and standing in lines made her light headed. "I'll do mine when I can drag Harry with me. I already got his present, yours and Teddy's. Everyone else is ridiculously hard. I hate Christmas shopping," Ginny said as she readjusted her ponytail. "My presence should be a gift enough."

"Oh ha ha," Hermione said sarcastically as they left the restaurant.

xxxxxx

Early the next morning Ginny found herself cursing Hermione for ever taking her to that damn sushi restaurant as she repeatedly threw up in the toilet.

Coughing and sputtering, Ginny reached her hand up to flush before resting her warm cheek against the cool porcelain seat. _Dammit Hermione, you're lucky you aren't around me. I'd curse you so fast your head would spin. _

Food poisoning, of course she would get that. Especially so close to Christmas too. Christmas was Ginny's favorite time of the year as it meant she could stuff herself full of food without people remarking about how disgusting she was. Getting food poisoning put a damper to all gorging on food related plans. And it was all Hermione's fault.

"Get the California rolls she said," Ginny said darkly as she felt her stomach protest at the memory of the sushi. "They're good for you, she said." Whatever she had planned to say next was forgotten as another wave of nausea overcame her.

"Ginny? Are you okay? Don't tell me you're getting sick," Harry's sleepy voice floated into the bathroom as the sounds of her retching had woken him up. Seeing his wife heaving into the toilet bowl made Harry feel sorry for her and he got down on his knees and held Ginny's hair back. "Oh Gin," Harry said softly as he rubbed her back.

"Bloody—Hermione—and her—bloody—sushi!" Ginny gasped in between vomiting.

A few moments later, Ginny's stomach finally calmed down enough and she flushed the toilet again. "I hate my life," Ginny groaned. "Two weeks till the great Weasley Christmas Eve feast and I have food poisoning."

"You sure it is food poisoning?" Harry asked as he got up to fill a small paper cup full of water. "It could be the stomach flu."

"Merlin, I hope not." Ginny accepted the water gratefully and swished it around in her mouth before spitting it out in the toilet.

"Even if it was the stomach flu, it wouldn't last two weeks. You'll be fine by the time we head to your parents for Christmas Eve and I'm sure you will once again beat George in your annual Christmas Food Eating contest." He helped Ginny to her feet and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Let's go back to bed and in the morning we'll see how you feel."

xxxxxx

As the days progressed, Ginny only felt worse. Her nausea was fierce and unwavering and she spent most of her days cooped up in the bathroom, throwing up. Not only that, but her sense of smell suddenly became heightened too. She hid Harry's cologne, banished ice cream and other dairy items and refused to be in the kitchen whenever Harry made eggs.

Ginny also found that she was _exhausted _by mid-day, needing frequent naps if she wanted to make it to the evening. Elizabeth had teased her mercilessly when Ginny passed out on her couch one afternoon while waiting for Elizabeth to return with tea.

The redhead knew that Harry was probably right and she probably did have the stomach flu. The fact that it _just wasn't going away _was driving Ginny mad.

When she brought it up to Elizabeth, the brunette looked thoughtful as she stirred her tea. "It is December," she said. "It is possible that Harry's right and it is the stomach flu."

"It doesn't feel like the stomach flu, that's the thing," Ginny protested as she sipped on her tea.

"Huh," Elizabeth said, setting her tea down to throw an afghan around her. "Tell me your symptoms again?"

Ginny ran through the list of them, even mentioning the day she was suddenly ravenously hungry for chips and chocolate pudding mixed together. She smiled as she remembered how disgusted Harry and Ron had looked when she mentioned it.

Elizabeth listened to Ginny talk but before the redhead could even finish, Elizabeth's eyes lit up and she squealed suddenly. She grabbed Ginny's teacup and put it down before pouncing on her friend.

"What the bloody hell?" Ginny yelped before her friend smothered her in a hug. "Lizzie, what on earth has gotten into you?"

Elizabeth sat up; her face flushed and eyes gleaming. "Ginny," Elizabeth said sweetly. "When did you last have your period?"

"Er, a month ago or so?" Ginny didn't like the smirk on Elizabeth's face so she was hesitant to respond.

If anything, Elizabeth's smirk grew larger by Ginny's answer. "And when was the last time you and Harry had marital relations?"

"What the hell? Why are you asking me—HOLY SHIT, NO WAY!"

xxxxxx

A few hours later, Ginny found herself locked in her bathroom, looking at the clear potion nervously. From her _Potions for the Modern Witch _book, she had to wait three minutes before she would know if she was pregnant or not. If the potion remained clear, then she wasn't pregnant. If it turned pink then she was.

Glancing at her watch, Ginny saw she had about a minute and a half left. Her palms were sweating and she wiped them nervously against her trousers. Her stomach was doing funny things too but she wasn't sure if it was because she was agitated or because she needed to throw up…

Did she really want a baby? Were she and Harry _ready _to have a baby? An infant was a big commitment and it meant an end to the life that she knew. She would have to give up her Quidditch dreams for a little bit too as there was no way Gwenog would let her play pregnant. Hell, Ginny wouldn't even want to play Quidditch while pregnant. There were too many risks.

Looking at her watch again, Ginny saw that the three minutes were up. Closing her eyes, Ginny willed herself to look. _Come on, Ginny, you can do this. Just open your eyes and look at the bowl._

Taking a few deep breaths, Ginny slowly opened her eyes and looked at the potion.

It was pink.

xxxxxx

**Three reviews? Really? I don't mean to sound ungrateful or anything but three only? To the three that reviewed though—thank you! You guys were so sweet and encouraging.**

**Until next chapter, my minions**

**-GC **


	3. Month Two

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_January 2005_

New Years Day dawned bright and early on the Potter home and Ginny stirred when she felt the warmth of the morning sun on her face. She didn't want to get up. All she wanted to do was sleep some more. Judging by the way the sun was hitting her face; Ginny reckoned it was only seven.

Unwillingly, she opened her eyes and glanced at her alarm clock. Her guess was correct as she saw it was seven thirty.

Stretching, Ginny snuggled into the warmth of her still sleeping husband, resting her hand on his chest. She enjoyed moments like this when she woke before Harry did. She liked seeing him look so relaxed and at ease. That and she was _totally _jealous of his insanely long eyelashes. She didn't think it was fair that men had such long eyelashes while women spent a small fortune trying to attain them. _Men have it so lucky, _Ginny though to herself as she pressed her legs against Harry's. _But babies also have long eye—_

Just the word 'babies' brought her crashing back to reality and a wave of guilt overcame her.

She still hadn't told Harry she was pregnant.

She had been meaning to tell him about the positive pregnancy test when he returned from his week long mission in France but the night before he came home, Ginny had used the toilet to discover that she was bleeding.

A panic-stricken Ginny had rushed to St. Mungo's where a Healer had examined her and told her that the baby was well. Healer Morris had explained to a tearful Ginny that bleeding during the first month of pregnancy was normal. The examination had also revealed that Ginny was about six weeks pregnant and that everything looked well. However, while Healer Morris said that the bleeding was normal, she also wanted to closely monitor Ginny too, just to make sure nothing abnormal would happen.

The fear that she could miscarry—especially with her recent bleeding—was the reason why she didn't tell Harry she was pregnant.

She just couldn't imagine telling Harry that they were going to have a baby only to tell him later that she miscarried. She didn't want to see the heartbreak on his face. Ginny knew that Harry wanted a family and the thought of dashing that wish away was enough to make the witch sick.

The Healer told her that because she was in the first trimester, her risk of miscarriage was greatest in the 13-week time zone. However, Healer Morris reassured Ginny by telling her that during the eighth week of pregnancy, her chance of miscarriage was greatly reduced.

That was nearly two weeks ago and Ginny was rapidly approaching her eighth week. She knew she had to tell Harry and she definitely planned on it. She wondered if she should wait until she passed the day of the eighth week but she decided against that. She was too impatient.

These thoughts plagued her as she got out of bed, shivering as her feet touched the cold floorboards. She padded to the bathroom and shut the door quietly so she didn't wake Harry. She eyed the toilet warily and prayed that she wouldn't have to vomit. Her nausea had been on and off the past few days; some mornings she would spend all morning in the bathroom and others she would be perfectly all right.

Looking at herself in the mirror, Ginny groaned when she saw how disgusting she looked. Her hair was a mess and the minimal makeup she had worn was smeared. Grumbling to herself, Ginny scrubbed her face and combed through her long hair and put it into a ponytail.

Once that was done with, she proceeded to glance at herself in the full-length mirror in the corner of the bathroom. Turning to the side, she noticed that her stomach wasn't as flat as it usually was.

_It's either a food baby or the actual baby, _Ginny mused to herself as she imagined herself with a huge belly and waddling about the house, unable to see her feet.

Thinking about the pregnancy only reminded Ginny that she had to tell her family—especially Harry. So far, only Healer Morris and Elizabeth knew that she was in the family way and Elizabeth especially was excited.

_If it's a girl_, her friend wrote in a letter to Ginny_, Elizabeth, naturally. And if it's a boy, Elizabetto_.

Ginny needed to tell Harry but she just didn't want to walk up to him and say, "Hi I'm pregnant." She wanted to surprise him.

But how?

So focused on these thoughts that when Ginny opened the door she smacked right into Harry.

"Whoa there," Harry laughed softly as he steadied Ginny. He rubbed her arms tenderly and pressed a loving to kiss to her forehead. "First off, good morning, love. Second, what has got you so out of sorts that you don't even realize that I was right in front of the door?"

Ginny looked up at Harry and reached up on her tiptoes (damn her height sometimes!) to ruffle his hair affectionately. "It's seven thirty in the morning," Ginny said. "Can't expect me to be coherent until at least eight thirty."

Harry smiled at her before glancing at the shower. Suddenly, his eyes darkened and he asked his wife casually, "are you coherent enough to take a shower with me?"

A slow smile spread across Ginny's face and she replied cheekily, "well of course. After all, conserving water is best, right?"

In the end, Ginny never got to plan out something special to tell Harry she was pregnant.

After a very fun shower (where more water was wasted than conserved), Ginny had felt the familiar twinge in her stomach and she knew that vomiting wasn't too far off. She just made it to the toilet before she threw up, keeping her eyes shut so she wouldn't see the sick.

Harry, now _very _concerned about Ginny's frequent nausea, sent a Patronus to Elizabeth's sister, a Healer, to _please _come over as soon as she could.

Leah Gold arrived within the hour and by then, Harry had forced Ginny into bed, threatening to tell her mother that she hadn't been taking care of herself. The poor man was worried sick, thinking that something was terribly wrong with his wife.

Leah listened to Harry speak about Ginny's symptoms and a knowing look came into her eyes. After a quick examination, Leah had announced that Ginny would feel better in about seven months.

In the time it took Leah to wink at Ginny and Disapparate, Harry had finally realized the meaning of Leah's words.

"Y-You're pregnant?" Harry asked faintly, staring at Ginny as if she grew three heads.

"Yes," Ginny said, getting out of bed to sit on the edge of the mattress. She eyed Harry warily, not sure how he would take the news.

"So, in seven months, we're going to be parents. We're going to have a baby," Harry said. His face still hadn't changed in its expression, something that worried Ginny. _Is he not happy that I'm pregnant? _The redhead thought to herself frantically. _Does he not want this baby? _

Even though inside, she was freaking out, she still kept a mask of composure on her face. She nodded and said, "yes."

Harry returned her nod and the next thing Ginny knew, she was falling onto her back, Harry on top of her as he hugged and kissed her face.

"A _baby_!" Harry said excitedly. "We're going to have a _baby_!"

Ginny felt a wave of relief crash over her as she heard Harry's excited voice. "So you aren't angry?" Ginny asked hesitantly.

"_Angry?_" Harry looked at her dubiously. "Are you _mad_? I'm so happy. I know we wanted to wait a bit before we started a family but—" He paused a moment before studying Ginny's face. "You don't seem too thrilled that you're pregnant," he said. "In fact, it looks like you already knew?"

Ginny inwardly groaned but she knew she had to tell Harry the truth, which she did. Harry hadn't been mad at all. He understood completely and to him, all that mattered was that she was happy that they were expecting a baby.

_A baby. _

Now that Harry knew about the pregnancy and was happy about it, Ginny finally allowed herself to get excited about the pregnancy. She thought of black haired babies with messy hair and her brown eyes and she smiled to herself, thinking about how wonderful that would be.

"What are you thinking about, love?" Harry asked her, noticing the smile.

Ginny looked at her husband and smiled teasingly. "Oh, just thinking about how ridiculous our child would look if we had a girl and she had your hair."

"Hey!" Harry yelped before he pinned her into the mattress. "You take that back."

Ginny laughed and tried to swat him away. "Never!" She proclaimed. "You can't make me either." She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Oh yeah?" Harry's eyes glinted dangerously and Ginny had a feeling something awful was about to happen. "We'll see about that." Quick as a flash, his hands were out and he was tickling her sides.

"No!" Ginny shouted before dissolving into a fit of giggles, twisting and turning on the bed as she tried to escape him. "You're such a—haha—prat!"

"Take it back," Harry grinned as he continued to tickle her. "And I'll stop tickling you."

"Stop!" Ginny shouted, her words mixed with fits of laughter. "Stop! I'm going to—haha—pee on myself!"

Harry did stop when Ginny said that and he pressed a soft kiss to her temple. "That'll teach you to make fun of my hair," he said as he cuddled her, his hand on her stomach.

Ginny covered his hand with hers and smiled in contentment, basking in the warmth of Harry's body and their combined happiness.

"Hey Harry?"

"Hmm?"

"You know we're going to have to tell my family, right?"

"Shit."

xxxxxx

"Did Grandma Molly make treacle tart for dessert tonight?" Teddy asked Harry and Ginny curiously as they made their way down the lane to the Burrow.

"I hope so, buddy," Harry remarked. "That's my favorite dessert."

"Mine too!" Teddy exclaimed and gazed up at his godfather adoringly.

Ginny bit back a laugh, knowing that Teddy loved treacle tart because _Harry _loved the sweet dessert. The six year old tried to emulate Harry in everything he did—including copying Harry's hair. Today, Teddy's hair was the same color as Harry's and it even stuck up in the back like Harry's did.

Sunday Family Dinners were a weekly thing at the Burrow. Molly Weasley demanded it, as she loved to be surrounded by her growing family of children and grandchildren. _Everyone _attended because no one wanted to face the wrath of the Weasley matriarch. Even her sons, who towered over her in height, still cowered when their mother brandished her wand and shouted at them.

As they neared the house, Harry picked Teddy up and took his wand out. Muttering a few choice words, a path was created for them through the snow, away from the normal walkway. George enjoyed setting booby traps beneath the snow so that when people walked on the path, they would fall flat on their faces. Harry had fallen for _that _one too many times.

When they got inside the house safely, Harry and Ginny helped Teddy take off his winter apparel and boots before watching him run off, yelling to his cousins that he was here.

"Oi! The Potters are here! About time, we're starving!" Ron quipped as he approached Harry and Ginny, hugging them both. "Hurry up, Mum won't even let me in the kitchen but now that you're here, I can eat."

"Honestly, Ronald," Hermione scolded as she hugged her two friends also. "Is food all you think about?"

"I'm sure he thinks about other things too, Hermione," George said, eavesdropping on the conversation, a wicked grin on his face. "Although I think it's probably about se—OW!"

Angelina, knowing that whatever her husband would say wouldn't be good, smacked George upside the head. "You deserve it," she said breezily, resting her hands on top of her swollen middle. "I would hug you two," she said to Harry and Ginny, "but I'm as big as a barge."

"Oh Angie," Ginny scolded as they walked towards the kitchen, "you are not huge. You're pregnant."

"I can't see my feet anymore," Angelina complained. "Sleeping is awful, the heartburn is ridiculous, the false contractions are hell and my charming son seems to enjoy pressing on my bladder every five minutes. Speaking of that, I'll be right back." Angelina turned and waddled in the opposite direction, aiming for the bathroom.

_Is that what I have to look forward to? _Ginny thought to herself as she entered the kitchen and accepted an enthusiastic hug from her mother.

"Sit down!" Molly said, nearly shoving her youngest child into a chair. "We'll start eating as soon as—_Ronald Weasley, if you do not move away from that dish I will hex your fingers off_."

Looking slightly guilty and alarmed, Ron scurried to his seat, which was right next to Harry's. Hermione sat to Ginny's left and the two women started a conversation about work. Hermione was very enthusiastic about a new piece of House Elves legislation that was being introduced and she proceeded to tell Ginny all about the bill.

Rather quickly, the entire kitchen was filled with Weasleys as they all sat down at the table. Teddy sat in between Harry and Ginny, eyeing Victoire warily. "She keeps trying to kiss me," Teddy whispered to Harry frantically. "But I don't _want _her to kiss me. Girls are icky."

"Thanks for that, Teddy," Ginny said in a mock huff.

Teddy's eyes widened and his hair quickly turned red. "No! Not all girls are icky. You and Nana and Grandma Molly are the onliest girls allowed to kiss me."

"That's better," Ginny laughed as she kissed Teddy's cheek, watching as her niece's face screwed up into a scowl. "Here, do you want some potatoes?"

The food was passed around the table easily as Molly watched carefully in order to make sure that no one was hogging one dish. As Ginny cut up Teddy's food, she heard broken bits of conversation surrounding the table. Hermione was scolding Ron for eating too fast ("honestly Ron, you act as if you have never seen food before!"), her father was coaxing Harry into explaining how digital cameras work and her mother was trying to get Bill into cutting his hair for the thousandth time ("Mum, Fleur and Vic like my hair and that's all that matters to me.").

"Hey Gin," George called from the opposite side of the table, a smirk on his face. "Eating contest?"

Hearing the words 'eating contest' brought Molly out of her one-sided conversation with Bill. "No." Their mother said firmly. "We're having a nice dinner and—"

"Five Galleons on Ginny," Bill said as Ron nodded in agreement.

"Five on George," Percy called as he fed his two-year-old daughter some mashed potatoes. His wife, Audrey, glared at him and Percy held up his hands defensively. "What? George won by a landslide on Christmas. It's only fair to bet on him."

Ginny scowled, remembering how badly she lost. She had blamed it on stress and her ever-present nausea. It still hadn't stopped George from lording it in her face that he beat her.

"Five on George as well," Angelina said. "Sorry, Ginny, but he did beat you last time. You looked positively nauseous and it wasn't a good look on you."

"Thanks for the support, Ang." Ginny said dryly, feeling Harry's hand on her thigh. She relaxed when he felt her squeeze her knee and she knew that they would have to tell her family within the next few moments that they were expecting a baby.

"I don't think an eating contest is a good idea," Harry cut in. "You two already ate an alarming amount of food. You wouldn't be proving anything if you competed right now."

Molly looked at Harry approvingly and said, "Harry is right. There is no need—"

"A drinking contest then!" George announced, clapping his hands together.

"George, what on _earth _is it with you and contests—"

"—GEORGE WEASLEY. I will _not _have you and your sister get drunk in front of the children!

"Daddy!" Victoire tugged on Bill's arm impatiently. "What does 'drunk' mean?"

"I got the Firewhiskey!" Ron cheered as he brought the bottle out, dancing just out of reach from a murderous looking Hermione.

"Mum, we're not going to get _drunk,_" George said, trying to be heard above the numerous conversations now going around the table. "We Weasleys hold our liquor well! Besides, what else is a Sobering Solution good for?"

"Arthur!" Molly rounded on her husband. "Arthur, do something about this!"

The older wizard opened his mouth to say something but stopped when Ron shoved two shot glasses in front of George and Ginny. "Drink up!" Ron said cheerfully.

Ginny eyed the liquid with barely concealed panic. She wasn't about to drink this and harm her baby. However, this wasn't the way that she and Harry wanted to announce their pregnancy…

"Er," Harry said, his facial expression mirroring Ginny's. "I don't think this is also a good idea."

"Why not?" George demanded as he downed his shot and slammed the glass on the table, smacking his lips. "C'mon Ginny, I've already one upped you. Catch up."

Ginny's temper flared and she shoved the drink away. "I'm not drinking that," she said testily.

"Why not?" Ron asked curiously. "You never had a problem before. What's going on with you Ginny? You haven't been your usual self since before Christmas."

"And I won't be for a while," Ginny muttered, feeling uncomfortable as her mother eyed her suspiciously. Ginny knew it wouldn't take long before her mother put two and two together. After all, Molly Weasley was quite familiar with pregnancy. _She's going to have kittens when she hears the news, _Ginny thought to herself.

"Why not, Ginny?" Arthur asked concern etched on his face.

Ginny sighed and twined her fingers with Harry under the table. "This wasn't the way we wanted to tell you," she said as she looked at her husband. "But I guess we have no choice. In seven months, you lot can expect a new addition to our Sunday night dinners."

There was a pregnant (no pun intended) pause before absolute chaos erupted. Mrs. Weasley burst into tears and lunged at Ginny and Harry, grabbing them both in tight hugs. Arthur beamed with joy; Hermione jumped in on the hugging action while Angelina laughed and told a stunned George, "Oh they're in for it now. They don't know what hit them."

xxxxxx

**Thanks to your lovely reviews, you guys are getting a nice long, chapter (about 3200 words) to show my appreciation for you readers. You guys are the bee's knees. **

**By the way, have you noticed the new changes to this site? What **_**is **_**it with these new pictures in front of the stories? I'm not too fond of them, to be honest. Lame. **


	4. Month Three

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_February 2005_

Telling Gwenog that she couldn't play for the upcoming season was one of the hardest things Ginny ever had to do.

She knew it had to happen. Healer Morris had been _extremely _clear in her demands that Ginny must quit Quidditch for the duration of her pregnancy. She wasn't allowed to Apparate so her only means of transportation currently was going through the Floo Network.

Ginny _hated _to Floo. Even when she wasn't pregnant, using the fireplace had always made her nauseous. It was even worse now that she was "in the pudding club" as George had eloquently put it.

Harry had taken everything Healer Morris had said to heart and he refused to allow Ginny to over exert herself in any way, shape or form. Any foods that weren't allowed were tossed in the rubbish bin. He did not allow her to carry anything over ten pounds (and even then, he watched her carefully). Harry also hid her high heels too (which Ginny didn't mind, as she _hated _wearing those blasted shoes) as he didn't want her to trip and fall while wearing them and hurting herself and the baby.

Her playing Quidditch was another thing that Harry was concerned about. "I'm not saying I want you to quit the team entirely," Harry said to Ginny. "But it is best if you go on leave right now and then you can return when the baby is born."

Ginny knew he was right. Plus, she knew she had to do it soon because her mother had been hounding her about it since she found out her daughter was expecting.

So, Ginny told Gwenog that she would have to be put on leave for the upcoming season and she nearly cried when she did so. Quidditch was her life and she loved her team. Gwenog had assured her that when she had the baby and was ready to return, her spot would always be there.

"But that doesn't mean," Gwenog said sternly, "that you can just lay around and eat biscuits all day long and then expect to play again. You need to be in tip-top shape when you return to the team."

"I promise," Ginny said, nodding vigorously before a thought crossed her mind. "Gwenog, what do you plan on telling the press when they realize I'm not starting?"

"Easy," Gwenog replied. "I won't say anything. Do you _really _think reporters are going to hound me for information?"

_No, _Ginny thought to herself. _Because reporters fear you and that wand of yours. _

"Besides," Gwenog continued. "It isn't my place to say that you're pregnant. I don't blame you for keeping quiet. I wouldn't want the bloody press at my door, wanting an interview."

That was the thing about marrying The Chosen One. Everyone and their mother suddenly became very interested in Ginny, especially now that she was a professional Quidditch player. She was used to her name being in the gossip columns of _Witch Weekly_. To Ginny, it wasn't a normal day if there wasn't a rumor about Ginny cheating on Harry or Harry and Ginny having a blazing row, which caused Harry to storm out of the house in a huff.

At first, the reports had upset and angered her but now she was used to them. "Let them talk," Ginny told an irritated Harry. "It doesn't bother me as you and I know the truth."

Ginny's pregnancy though—that was something that the Potters decided to keep to themselves for as long as possible. They knew that once her pregnancy was leaked, they would get no peace from reporters.

"Thanks, Gwenog." Ginny said in relief. "I was worried about that."

Gwenog nodded. "I'll miss you on the field, Potter. You're a damn good player. And when that baby is born, make sure the baby is dressed in Harpies attire and all Puddlemere and Cannons clothes are burned," Gwenog wrinkled her nose in disgust.

Ginny held in laughter, knowing that Gwenog was mentioning Harry and Ron's favorite teams. "I can promise you that."

xxxxxx

Hermione Weasley was just settling down to read one of her favorite books (_War and Peace_) when a knock on her door forced her to put her book down.

_Who could it be? _Hermione thought to herself as she left the living room. Unlocking the door, Hermione opened it to reveal a twitchy looking Harry.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed in surprise. "Come on in! What are you doing here? Are you okay? You look a bit…peaky."

Harry stepped into the house and took off his shoes. "Is Ginny here?"

"No?" Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Is everything alright? Is Ginny okay? And the baby?"

"Yeah, the baby is okay. Ginny, I'm not so sure about." Harry shrugged off his cloak and hung it up.

"What makes you say that?" Hermione asked as she ushered Harry into the kitchen so she could make some tea.

"Ginny's gone _mad_," Harry said, sitting down in a chair and running his hands through his hair.

Hermione placed the kettle on the stove and charmed it to heat up quickly. "What do you mean?"

"Her mood swings!" Harry exclaimed. "I walked into the house to find her crying her eyes out because her favorite pair of trousers didn't fit anymore and she said she was getting fat. So I told her that she _wasn't _fat and that she could just go and get new trousers. So what does she do? She gets _mad _at me for saying that and starts yelling at me, saying I was insensitive and that I didn't understand. Then she said it was _my _fault that she was "in the club" and tried to hex me!" Harry finished this all in one breath before letting his head fall forward onto his arms with a groan.

Hermione placed her hand over her mouth, trying to conceal her grin. _Poor Harry, _she thought to herself as she patted Harry on the back. "This is normal," she said, trying to soothe her friend. "I read about it. Mood swings pick up in the third month of pregnancy."

"How long do they _last_?"

"The first trimester is always the worst," Hermione said, remembering the words written in the book as she heard the kettle whistle. "Typically, all nasty pregnancy symptoms end by the end of the first trimester. Ginny's nearing the end of that. Second trimester is apparently a lot better and she'll be more comfortable."

"This first trimester stuff is awful," Harry said as he accepted his tea. "Besides mood swings, she's so tired most of the time. Nausea and vomiting? Not as bad as last month but it's still there. Cravings? She made me go out and get strawberry ice cream the other day and she crumbled vinegar and salt crisps on top and she ate it _all. _"

Hermione mirrored Harry's look of disgust as she set out some of Molly's homemade fudge. "Ew."

"I've been kicked out of the bed too," Harry groaned. "Ginny says that my _snoring _is very distracting and she can't sleep because of it. Sex life is non-existent too. I think Ginny finds me absolutely repulsive right now."

Hermione made a face as she sipped her tea. She really didn't want to hear about her friends' sex life (or _lack _of one too).

"And _whatever _you do, do _not _mention her breasts." Harry said, his green eyes widening before he shuddered. "They've—er—grown quite a bit and Ginny's been a bit self-conscious about them. The other day, George mentioned that it looked like Ginny had been stuffing her bra and Ginny hexed him. Bat-Bogey Hex. It's _much _more lethal now that she is pregnant."

Hermione winced as she had seen how powerful Ginny's Bat-Bogey Hex was. She couldn't even imagine how bad it was currently.

Harry sighed deeply and took off his glasses to rub his eyes with his hands. "I know pregnancy isn't exactly easy so I feel bad for complaining about such trivial matters like this. I know Ginny doesn't _mean _it."

"Oh Harry," Hermione sighed. "You shouldn't feel guilty about this stuff. I'm sure Ginny regrets her behavior too. She can't help it though—her hormones are out of whack right now. Give it a few more weeks and everything should settle down. The books say that the second trimester is the easiest." She knew she already said that but she wanted to reiterate it further.

Harry snorted and looked at her in amusement. "The books say a lot of things. It doesn't mean that they happen." He drained his tea and glanced at his watch. "I have to go. Meeting at the Ministry."

"Is everything alright?" Hermione asked in alarm. Not too long ago there was a small Death Eater uprising in Wales but the Aurors had quickly squashed that.

"Yes, everything is fine," Harry said. "There's a conference in America in a week—I want to say in Michigan—and Jackson pulled out at the last second. Kingsley's trying to figure out whom to send in his place. I hope it isn't me." The man sighed before thanking Hermione for the tea and leaving.

xxxxxx

Hermione was right about one thing. Ginny _did _feel guilty about the way she was treating Harry. He didn't deserve it but he just made her so _mad _sometimes.

Ginny was not liking pregnancy so far. Sure, the whole 'there's a new life inside of me' bit was awesome but everything that went along with it was awful. She was starting to gain more weight and her belly was starting to get soft. Her mother said that Ginny still had some time before she officially 'popped.' Ginny had to suddenly buy new bras because her once small breasts were now getting larger. This was something Ginny did not like at all. Although her nausea wasn't as bad as last month, it was still there and still a pain in the ass in the morning.

The worst part was the mood swings. Dear Merlin, the mood swings were the worst. Earlier in the day she had cried piteously because she couldn't find a matching pair of socks. She was a hormonal, weepy mess and this was not her normal self. So, she did what any other witch would do in her situation.

She bitched about it to a very pregnant Angelina.

Angelina was decidedly uncomfortable. She was a week away from her due date and her belly was massive. Her blouses couldn't even cover her stomach properly and she constantly complained about her swollen feet.

"I _wish _I could complain about my favorite jeans not buttoning," Angelina said as she munched on a piece of cake. "Now, I can't even find a pair of trousers that _fit. _Even stretchy, elastic trousers ride up my arse. I can't wait until this baby is born. I just want to be not pregnant anymore."

Ginny frowned and rubbed her stomach absentmindedly. "Is there any part of pregnancy that makes it worth it?" She asked cautiously. "It sounds like a pretty miserable experience."

"It is," Angelina said bluntly. "I like to call the baby 'my little parasite'. George doesn't think it's funny but it's true though. The baby is a parasite. But all bitching aside, just wait. You're still early on in your pregnancy but when you first feel your baby kick and move inside of you, you'll want to cry. It's such a magical feeling." Angelina smiled, looking down at her swollen middle lovingly. "Yes, I complain daily about how much I dislike being pregnant. And it is true—I _don't _like pregnancy. I do, however, like the end result of a baby. Pregnancy is hard but it is _so _worth it because what's nine months of hell to a lifetime of loving your child?"

Ginny couldn't argue with that, especially the end bit about a lifetime with her child. She loved her baby to bits already and she desperately couldn't wait to meet the baby. Even though Angelina ranted about how much she hated being so big, Ginny envied her too. She wanted to _feel _pregnant—not bloated. She wanted to see her stomach get bigger and have a physical reminder that she was carrying a baby.

She confessed this to Angelina and the woman snorted. "Enjoy it while it lasts, Ginny. Because you will just keep getting bigger and bigger and you'll be _so _uncomfortable. When are you due again?"

"Fifth of August," Ginny said automatically. Her due date was ingrained in her mind as it was the day that her pregnancy could officially end and her baby could be in her arms. A part of her hoped that the baby would arrive on her birthday. _Now that would be a birthday present to remember, _Ginny thought to herself.

Angelina winced. "You are going to be huge and uncomfortable in the middle of the summer, my condolences."

Ginny groaned as she realized this too. "I'm just going to have a permanent Cooling Charm set during those months," the redhead said. She was silent for a few moments before she said in a small voice, "I don't know the first thing about babies."

Angelina looked surprised. "You were around when Teddy, Victoire and Molly were babies. I remember you held all three of them and played with them."

"Holding and playing is different than actually caring for them," Ginny said, her cheeks tinged pink. "Whenever they cried, I gave them back as quickly as possible."

Angelina smirked, looking slightly amused. "Well, I know how to solve this. When the baby is born," she patted her stomach, "and when I'm ready to go out for a night with George, you and Harry can babysit."

Ginny's stomach flip-flopped at the thought of that. What if she was really bad at it? What if she _dropped _her nephew? How could she forgive herself if she did that?

"Er," Ginny licked her dry lips. "Are you sure that is a good idea?"

"Of course it is," Angelina exclaimed. "It's a fantastic idea. You get your baby experience while I get to go out and not lose my mind. What could possibly go wrong? But don't worry," she assured Ginny as she saw her sister-in-law's panic grow. "Baby-sitting the baby won't be for a while. First this baby has to be born yet and I don't think that is happening any time soon."

xxxxxx

_Oh Angelina, sometimes you need to keep your mouth shut because you just jinx yourself_, Ginny thought to herself sleepily, her head resting on Harry's chest as she curled into the uncomfortable hospital chair.

After Ginny had returned home and had dinner with Harry, they had watched some TV (a Muggle device that continued to fascinate Ginny) before heading to bed. They had been forcibly awoken at two am with Molly Weasley's Patronus in their bedroom.

_Angelina is in labor. Come to St. Mungo's immediately._

So, here they were, waiting in the maternity ward for any news about Angelina and the baby. The whole family was with them, including Victoire and Molly. They had been excited about being out of bed so late but it hadn't taken long before they fell asleep. Fleur and Audrey had conjured blankets and pillows for the girls and charmed the area around them so the children wouldn't wake up if the adults got too loud.

"Anyone up for playing Exploding Snap?" Ron asked the group, taking a deck of cards out of his jacket.

"Bugger off, Ron," Ginny groaned. "It's too bloody early to play a game."

"Ginevra, watch your language," their mother said severely. She seemed to be the only one truly awake. Arthur was snoring softly, his chin nearly touching his chest. Taking her wand out, she Summoned the cards and tucked them into her pocket.

Ron, now looking like a petulant child, scowled and wrapped an arm around a dozing Hermione, who instantly snuggled into the warmth that her husband provided.

Ginny glanced up at Harry to see that he was dozing too. _He works so hard, _Ginny thought to herself as she rested her hand on his chest, feeling his heart beat beneath her fingers.

The hours seemed to tick by slowly as the Weasley/Potter family waited anxiously for news. The last time they had seen George he was white as a sheet and wincing as he heard Angelina scream that she was going to hex his bits off if he _ever _touched her again.

Harry and Ron had looked frightened when they heard that scream but Bill and Percy only looked mildly amused, as if they had heard it before with their respective wives.

"Now lads don't look so terrified," Bill said, smirking at Ron and Harry. "They _really _don't mean it."

"Well they could," Percy quipped, smiling in a very unPercy like way. "Just because our wives didn't hex them off, doesn't mean that Ginny or Hermione wouldn't."

Ginny glared at her brothers and made a mental note to hex them later. "Don't worry," she whispered into Harry's ear. "I wouldn't do that to you. I happen to _like _your bits."

Harry's smile didn't reach his eyes. "I don't want to see you in so much pain," he said in a low voice, grasping her hands and squeezing them tightly.

"I won't be," Ginny assured Harry, loosening one hand to push his hair out of his eyes. "I plan on taking a potion to lessen the pain. Angelina is a masochist and went without any pain potions. I'm sure she's regretting that decision now."

Harry nodded and mumbled out a, "probably" before falling silent.

Seven o'clock came and went without any mention of a baby. The majority of the adults were now waking up and Ron was complaining loudly about being hungry.

"Honestly Ron," Hermione hissed, her bushy hair sticking up in all directions. "Your brother and sister-in-law are about to have a baby and all you're thinking about _is your stomach_?"

Ron opened his mouth to say something but a sharp look from his mother caused him to close it again.

_Good, _Ginny thought to herself. _He didn't want to make Hermione mad anyway, especially as she's sleep deprived to begin with. _

Victoire was the first child to wake and she climbed into her mother's lap, jabbering away in French. Ginny couldn't understand one word of it but if she had to guess, it would be that her niece was hungry and wanted breakfast. Her guess was correct as Fleur reached into her handbag and pulled out a wrapped up chocolate croissant. She warmed it up with a quick wave of her wand and gave it to her daughter, who munched on it happily.

Ron gazed at the croissant longingly and opened his mouth to say something but the doors to the birthing rooms burst open at that moment and George emerged, looking half-wild. "IT'S A BOY!" He shouted to his family, nearly dancing with glee. "I HAVE A SON!"

The room descended into chaos after those two proclamations and Molly was the first to George, seizing him and sobbing into his neck. The rest of the family clamored around George, shouting out questions.

"What's his name?"

"How much does he weigh?"

"How long is he?"

"How is Angelina?"

"What does he look like?"

George extracted himself from his mother, still grinning from ear to ear. "Let me go get him, hold on." He disappeared back through the doors but returned not even a few minutes later, holding a small blue bundle.

Molly, of course, was the first to hold the baby and she cried as she looked at her newest grandson. "He looks just like you, Georgie," she sniffed. "He's so beautiful." Unwillingly, she passed the sleeping baby to her husband, who gazed at the baby with adoration.

"What's his name?" Audrey asked, holding a still sleepy Molly.

George looked at his son before saying proudly, "Fred. Fred Weasley."

The name of the baby brought on a fresh wave of tears for not only Molly but Arthur too. Bill's eyes looked suspiciously bright; as he was next to hold his new nephew. Ginny felt her throat tighten and she squeezed Harry's hand tightly. _Oh Fred, _she thought to herself. _I wish you were here to see this. Who ever thought that George would be a father?_

Soon enough, it was Ginny's turn to hold Baby Fred and she cradled him in her arms carefully, gazing down at his sweet face. Fred had his mother's dark complexion and hair but there was no mistaking he was a Weasley as he looked exactly like George _and Fred too, _Ginny thought to herself as she ran a finger lightly over Fred's round cheeks.

"Ginny," Harry said softly, his hand resting on her lower back. "Can I hold the baby now?"

"Huh?" Ginny snapped out of her baby-induced haze and looked into Harry's green eyes. "Oh, yes. Of course." She carefully handed Baby Fred over to Harry and watched as Harry adjusted his arms before cradling the baby in the crook of his arms. A small smile graced his face as he looked down at the newborn and the sight of this nearly brought Ginny to tears.

_Oh baby, _Ginny thought to herself as she touched her stomach. _You're going to have such a fantastic father. _

xxxxxx

**Three months down, six to go. Don't forget to review!**


	5. Month Four

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_March 2005_

"Well that wasn't there yesterday," Ginny muttered to herself as she stood sideways in front of the mirror, in just her bra and pajama shorts. Her hands traced the outline of her stomach where a small but visible bump was showing. Unable to help herself, Ginny smiled and placed her hand on the bump, relishing the fact that she was looked and felt pregnant.

Besides that, Ginny now felt _great. _Her morning sickness was pretty much gone, her need to pee every five minutes was going away too and she didn't have any more breast tenderness. Her fatigue was still there but it wasn't as bad as it used to be. Besides, she never minded the occasional nap…

Her hair now looked _fabulous_ too, thank you very much. It had never been as shiny or thick before and Ginny loved it. Her mother had warned her that this was only temporary and that it would all fall out once she gave birth but Ginny didn't care. For once her hair was _manageable _and she left it down more often now. Her nails were also beautiful too. Ginny normally had brittle nails that looked disgusting due to her habit of biting them when nervous. However, her nails were becoming strong and they grew fast too. They looked so good that Ginny now was painting her nails, something she normally eschewed.

These recent developments pleased Molly Weasley greatly. Ginny had never been overly feminine growing up with six brothers. She preferred jeans and a plain shirt to dresses and only put on makeup when it was absolutely necessary. Ginny never understood why she had been lusted after so much at Hogwarts when most of the time she looked like a ragamuffin.

Ginny rubbed her stomach tenderly, thrilled with this recent development. She couldn't wait to show Harry.

Smiling at her reflection, she padded to her closet to find something to wear. _Something stretchy, _she thought to herself as she glanced at the clothes she had. _I guess I need to go clothes shopping for maternity clothes. _She found a pair of black stretchy pants and slipped on a warm sweater. Although it was March, it was still freezing outside.

She rubbed her stomach again and wondered if they could tell the baby's sex soon. She and Harry had seen a Healer a few days ago and when the Healer tried to see what the sex was, the baby had kept its legs tightly closed. "Even if the baby's legs weren't closed," Healer Morris told a disappointed Harry and Ginny. "I think it is still a bit too early to tell if you're having a boy or a girl. I couldn't be completely sure right now anyway."

Although the Healer couldn't tell the sex, it didn't stop the Weasley family from placing bets on whether the baby would be a girl or a boy. Molly was convinced that the baby was a boy based on the fact that Ginny couldn't stop attacking pretzels or anything sour. Fleur was convinced that the baby was a girl because Ginny had such awful morning sickness. Ginny, however, didn't believe those silly old wives tales and she just waited anxiously for the Healer to tell her what her baby's sex was.

Harry had no preference and told Ginny that all he wanted was a healthy baby. Ginny, on the other hand, secretly wanted a boy. She wouldn't admit it to anyone but she was scared of raising a little girl. Although she had two nieces—with Victoire being the girliest girl Ginny had ever seen—she still wasn't familiar with all the girly items that came with raising a daughter. She secretly feared that her daughter would hate her for not being uber girly and she had nightmares about it too, which caused her to not only wake up in a cold sweat but have to pee too.

But no matter, even if she had a girl she would be thrilled to bits. Plus, as her mother said, she had no idea how to parent Ginny when she came around. "I had six boys prior to your birth," Molly told Ginny. "Plus, I had two brothers. It took lots of practice and a lot of mistakes when it came to parenting you. You know how many times I forgot that you were a girl?"

"Mum!" Ginny said, dismayed. "How could you?"

"Easy," Her mother said, waving her hand dismissively. "You and Ron looked extraordinarily similar as children. Not only that, but don't you remember that awful haircut you gave yourself when you were four?"

Ginny looked confused until realization dawned on her face and she cringed. "Oh Merlin, not _that _haircut."

When Ginny had been four years old, she had been going through her 'I'm going to do whatever my big brothers do' phase and proceeded to chop off all her hair, wanting to emulate Bill's short hair. It had taken quite a while to grow it back as Molly, who had been absolutely furious, decided to not charm it back so Ginny could learn her lesson.

And what a lesson it had been. That haircut was the reason Ginny kept her hair long and refused to get it cut anywhere above her neck.

Although her mother's talk had slightly soothed her fears, she was still scared of having a little girl. However, deep down, she knew that she also knew she was scared of being a parent in general. She had never been quite good at taking care of herself so how could she expect to take care of a baby?

It was times like this when she honestly couldn't wait to babysit baby Fred because if she did a good job, then maybe her fears would be soothed. But that was only when she was able to babysit baby Fred. Angelina and George were totally besotted with their son and Angelina declared that she could never, ever leave her baby alone.

So that was where Ginny was headed—to Angelina and George's home. She wanted to see the baby and she also wanted to steal some of Angelina's maternity clothes, as she had no idea where to start at the stores.

Ginny sighed as she went to the fireplace and eyed it warily. She _hated _to Floo and she wished she could Apparate. "Bloody restrictions," she muttered to herself as she took a pinch of powder and threw it into the fire. Taking a deep breath she shouted, "Angelina and George's house!" before she started spinning.

xxxxxx

Ginny spun out of the fireplace and fell neatly into the armchair nearest to the grate. Angelina and George had placed the chair there specifically for guests who had not perfected the art of gracefully exiting out of a fireplace.

"You really need to learn how to Floo properly," Angelina laughed as she walked into the room, looking extremely tired. "Hermione stopped by not even forty minutes ago," Angelina remarked. "And when she emerged from the fireplace she fell off the chair and crashed into the wall. It was funny until the baby woke up immediately after I put him down."

Ginny winced and got out of the chair, rubbing her stomach self-consciously. "Is he asleep now?"

"Finally, yes." Angelina said. "I don't know how long it will last though. Freddie is an awful sleeper. I was coming down to make myself a draught so I could wake up."

"Do you want me to leave?" Ginny asked, looking at her sister-in-law closely. "You look exhausted."

"No," Angelina stressed. "I wouldn't mind the company. George went to work and I've been going stir-crazy at home. Plus, you could use the experience. You finally popped, I see." She gestured towards Ginny's stomach. "Congratulations, that's an exciting step."

Ginny beamed and hugged Angelina. "It's that noticeable?"

"Well, not really." Angelina admitted as she pulled some ingredients out of her kitchen cabinets. "But I was pregnant not too long ago and I know that the slight swell of your stomach is from a baby, not from last night's dinner."

Ginny sat down at the wooden kitchen table and watched as Angelina quickly whipped up a draught to make her wake up. "Yeah, I'm pretty excited about the bump. I finally feel pregnant."

"You going to cover it up when you go out in public?" Angelina asked as she swigged the potion, making a face as she swallowed it.

"For right now, yes, I plan on it," Ginny said. "I would rather the papers _not _know I was pregnant."

"Good woman," Angelina said, tipping her glass at Ginny before chugging the rest. "Merlin, that is awful stuff but it works. So, let me guess. You came over not only to see your darling nephew but to also steal some clothes because we both know you would rather extract your own teeth than shop for clothes."

Ginny was impressed. "You know me too well."

Angelina laughed, looking a bit more awake now. "I know, I'm good. But let's go upstairs and see which clothes will fit. You can peek in on the baby too but please be quiet, I really don't want him to—"

The sound of a baby wailing stopped Angelina's sentence and the woman instantly swore. "Why can't he nap for longer than forty-five minutes?" She grouched. "He isn't hungry and his nappy isn't wet. He just wants to be _held_."

"Let me hold him!" Ginny said, standing up suddenly. "I haven't seen him in a few days and besides, I really need to practice."

Angelina nodded, looking slightly relieved. "Alright, if you insist. I'll warn you, he spits up often so just place a cloth on your shoulder and you'll be okay."

Ginny nodded and moved down the hall towards Fred's nursery. Opening the door, the smell of baby powder overwhelmed her and she coughed slightly. "Hi Freddie," Ginny said softly into the darkened room as she made her way towards the baby's cot. "It's me, your favorite Aunt Ginny." Peering into the crib, she gazed upon the crying face of her nephew. Picking him up, she adjusted him in her arms and sat down in the rocking chair, looking down at him. Freddie stopped crying and gazed at Ginny's face curiously.

"What are you looking at?" Ginny cooed to the newborn as she stroked his round, dark cheek tenderly. "Is it my hair? It's funny, my brothers and parents and I all have red hair. We Weasleys are known for the color. However, you are the only one so far with black hair. It is very odd to not see some shade of red in this family but I think the black hair suits you. I don't think red hair would go well with your skin color. It would clash horribly." She liked knowing that the baby was staring at her and not crying as it meant that she was doing something right. With that thought, she allowed herself to relax again.

"You're my little experiment, hope you don't mind," Ginny murmured to the baby as she rocked slowly back and forth. "You see, your cousin is going to be born in August and I have no idea how to care for babies. Sure, I held and played with Vic and Molly but that doesn't mean I'm totally prepared to take care of my _own _baby. So, I'm going to learn through you. If I mess up, well that will just be between you and me. You can't talk anyway so I know I won't get in trouble." She smiled at the baby and kissed his head, laughing as the baby looked startled at the sound of his own sneeze.

"Oh hush, that sneeze was dainty compared to your Uncle Harry's sneezes," Ginny remarked as she continued to rock. "When he sneezes, his whole body jerks and he makes the funniest noise. It is absolutely hilarious. I purposely put a whole bunch of pepper in his chicken one time just to see him sneeze." She looked thoughtful. "Does that make me a bad person, Freddie?"

The baby continued to study her, not saying a word.

"Didn't think so," Ginny said, deciding that Freddie was agreeing with her. "You're a very good listener. I should talk to you more often."

Soon enough, Fred fell asleep in her arms and Ginny carefully put him back in his cot. She tiptoed out of his room and left the door partially ajar so that if he cried, Angelina or Ginny could rescue him.

She found Angelina in her room, sorting through piles of clothes. "Is Freddie asleep?" She asked, hearing Ginny's footsteps on the hardwood floors.

"Yes," Ginny said proudly. "I got him to go to sleep."

Angelina looked amused. "Good I'm—don't you look so smug. Just wait till _your _baby is born and he decides to boycott naps."

"He? What makes you so sure my baby is a boy?"

"Just a hunch," the woman said as she folded a purple t-shirt neatly and placed it in a pile. "Then the grandchildren would be equal when it came to sexes. Two girls and two boys. I've already put in five Galleons towards the 'Potter baby is a boy' pot. George and I are sure about it."

Ginny rolled her eyes and looked at the clothes, changing the subject. "So, are these all for me?"

"Some of them," Angelina said. "The rest are clothes that I know you would never wear because they are too fashion-forward."

Ginny stuck out her tongue. "I like being comfortable," she defended.

Angelina rolled her eyes and continued to sort, with Ginny helping her. The two women began to chat about nonsensical things when Ginny felt something funny in her nose. She wrinkled her nose, itched the side of it and sneezed abruptly.

"Gesundheit," Angelina said, looking up from her folding. "That was an impressive sneeze Ginny, are you—Ginny? Your nose is bleeding."

The redhead looked up suddenly and dabbed at her nose. Sure enough, when she brought her hand back she saw a smear of dark red blood.

"Damn," she cursed as she Summoned some tissue to wipe the blood away. "What caused this?"

"Oh, it is normal," Angelina said, looking back down to fold. "Don't be alarmed if you get more as your pregnancy progresses. It is normal for pregnant women to get numerous nosebleeds."

"Er, alright." Ginny pinched the bridge of her nose and tipped her head forward so she could try and stop the blood flow.

Eventually, the blood did stop and Ginny left an hour later with a whole bunch of maternity clothes and strict instructions on how to wear the clothes properly because, according to Angelina, Ginny did not know how to dress herself. "Dress your bump," Angelina stressed. "Accentuate it so that everyone can see that you're pregnant. Oh come on, Gin, you can't hide your pregnancy forever. Once the press knows, let everyone see that cute belly. It's the only time in your life that showing off a rounded stomach is perfectly acceptable."

_Yeah yeah, _Ginny thought to herself as she made her way to Diagon Alley, as she wanted to visit George, Verity and Ron. _Accentuate my bump, my arse. The last thing I need is the press to find out I'm in the club. They'll have kittens._

And kittens they certainly did have when reporters skulking around Diagon Alley spotted Ginny Potter walking about with a suspiciously rounded stomach…

xxxxxx

**And another chapter down! Be proud of me, I'm actually chugging along quite nicely when it comes to this story. **

**Although updates may or may not be as frequent in the coming weeks. I'm starting summer classes on Monday (shoot me) and, I decided to take two courses. Mostly, because as I'm now a college junior (yikes!) I've decided that in order to graduate in 4 years, I really need to get my shit together. So, yeah. I promise not to abandon this story as I really like it but updates will not be so frequent. So, remain with me, my faithful readers! I promise you will not be disappointed.**

**Review! **


	6. Month Five

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_April 2005_

_POTTER PREGNANCY!_

_THE CHOSEN ONE TO BECOME A FATHER_

_SHE'S PREGNANT! HARRY AND GINNY POTTER EXPECTING A BABY!_

The headlines were _really _starting to irritate Ginny. So much that she started lighting every newspaper on fire whenever her owl, Nymeria, brought one in. Harry was incredibly amused by her lighting of newspapers and asked her whenever a newspaper arrived if she was actually angry or if it was the pregnancy hormones talking.

"A little bit of both!" Ginny fumed as she lit the _Daily Prophet _on fire. "But mostly anger. I hate these bloody newspapers and reporters. They need to leave me alone."

Ginny was now officially "showing" even though she was only five months along. Didn't help that she was a skinny little twig normally so her growing stomach was easily seen. Now that the entire British Wizarding World knew about Ginny's pregnancy, she was constantly accosted by people whenever she went out. Everyone wanted to touch her stomach or give her advice and it drove Ginny mad-_especially _the stomach touching. A fifteen minute errand now took up to an hour as she was always being stopped by shoppers. It was becoming such a hassle that she was now disguising herself whenever she went to Diagon Alley. She was tired of stupid people coming up to her and saying that it was obvious she was starving herself as she looked too skinny.

She _was_ gaining weight though—while eating healthy portions of cake, tarts and sweets, but not ice cream (_ick_)—and it was easily seen in her face and her now dimpled thighs. Normally, Ginny would have despaired at the thought of gaining weight but she didn't care. She was pregnant! She deserved to take time off and eat whatever the hell she wanted. "I am eating for two, you know," she said to an amazed Harry as she tucked into a third helping of spaghetti and meat sauce. "I have to give this little baby all the nutrients it can get."

Her ravenous appetite also meant that she could easily beat George at the food eating contests they had. For the past three Sundays, she had dominated and watched gleefully as George sulked about it in the sitting room.

Her mother, on the other hand, was not amused by Ginny's appetite. "Pregnancy is not a free-for-all," Molly scolded Ginny, swatting her hand away from grabbing an extra apple tart. "Too much weight gain during pregnancy isn't a good thing!"

Unfortunately for Ginny, Healer Morris had said the same thing at her appointment a week ago. The Healer was pleased that Ginny was gaining weight and eating—unlike other Quidditch players who simply starved themselves during pregnancy so they didn't gain weight—but she also warned her not to overdo it. "The last thing you want is to give birth and your baby to either have diabetes or for you to struggle carrying around an extra thirty pounds of weight. That isn't easy to get off, especially if you plan on playing Quidditch again."

Harry, who had accompanied her to the appointment, shot her a smug look and Ginny wanted to hex him for that.

"When can we find out the sex of the baby?" Harry asked anxiously.

"We can try today," Healer Morris said as she measured Ginny's stomach. "Maybe your baby will cooperate with us."

"Unlikely," Ginny said, sticking her tongue out at Harry when he glared at her. "What? I'm just telling it how it is. This baby is about as cooperative as you are, Harry."

Harry rolled his eyes and held his wife's hand, deciding it was best to not say anything. Ginny's temper—and her wand—was quick to snap at the barest hint of a slight.

"Alright, let's see," Healer Morris said as she took her wand, pointed it at Ginny's rounded stomach and muttered a spell. A box appeared out of the Healer's wand—small at first—but bigger and bigger until it was the size of one of those old school TV screens, something Ginny had seen in her Muggle Studies class.

"Baby looks well," Healer Morris said as she flicked her wand again so that the baby appeared inside the white box. Ginny's heart was in her throat as she saw her baby and from Harry's sharp intake of breath she knew he was just as amazed.

Their baby was beautiful, the most beautiful baby in the whole world, Ginny decided. She thought that her nieces and nephew were beautiful babies but _her _baby took the cake.

Her baby was hairless so far—that much she could tell—and she wondered if she would give birth to a bald baby. The thought of that made her smile, as she knew that would be fun guessing what hair-color their baby would have.

"Baby is right on track too, growth and developmentally wise," Healer Morris said but she could have been speaking Mermish for all Ginny cared. All that mattered to her was drinking in the sight of her baby. She felt an ache grow in her chest and she desperately wished she could hold her baby. These nine months of waiting was incredibly unfair.

"Let's try and see if we're dealing with a boy or a girl," the Healer mused as she twirled her wand, coaxing the baby to move. "C'mon, baby, we just want to see your bits."

Harry bit back a laugh and grinned at Ginny, his eyes suspiciously bright. Ginny laced their fingers together and squeezed, wanting desperately for their baby to cooperate.

"Ah," Healer Morris said. "But of course, you're acting shy." She had managed to get the baby to turn and the Potters could see that the baby's legs were crossed tightly to the chest. Ginny felt a pang of disappointment and from the sigh that escaped Harry's lips, she knew he felt the same.

Healer Morris spent the next ten minutes trying to get the baby to uncross its legs but the baby wasn't budging. Sighing, she dropped her wand so that the box went away and she apologized to Ginny and Harry. "Maybe next time we'll get to see."

"Maybe it's best," Ginny said to Harry as he helped her sit up (she had been experiencing frequent dizziness whenever she changed positions) and get ready to leave. "I mean we haven't even picked a name yet for the baby."

"I know," Harry sighed. "But I just want to know. I don't understand why our child is being so modest."

Ginny stood on her tiptoes to press a kiss to Harry's cheek. "Don't worry, love. When the baby is ready, the baby will show us whether or not we get to deal with a girl or a boy."

xxxxxx

"Mum, stop hogging the baby." Ginny grouched as she sat on the sofa in the Weasley sitting room, her feet propped up on an ottoman. "Freddie obviously wants to spend time with his favorite Aunt Ginny."

Molly looked up from her two-month-old grandson, glared at Ginny and returned to cooing at Freddie. "Your Aunt Ginny is being a right old brat," she said to the baby.

"That's because Aunt Ginny hasn't slept well in three days and has terrible back pain," the woman in question said loudly.

"Suck it up," Angelina said as she perched on the edge of the ottoman. "You think this is bad? It gets even worse. Just wait until you can't see your feet anymore. Then we'll talk."

Ginny sighed, placing her hands on her stomach and rubbing it gently. "Angie, when did you start feeling the baby?"

Angelina opened her mouth to answer but Hermione, who had walked into the room at that exact moment, responded instead.

"I read that around the eighteenth to twentieth week you can start to feel little fluttering movements. The books call it quickening." She handed Ginny some water and moved towards Molly, somehow persuading the older woman to let her hold Freddie.

Angelina watched Hermione for a moment before she turned back to Ginny and said, "the books say between that span of time but I didn't feel Fred kick until I was about—oh—twenty five weeks or so. He might have kicked earlier but I never felt it or summed it up to gas." She patted her stomach fondly before refocusing. "Have you felt anything yet, Gin?"

"I don't think so," Ginny confessed. "What am I supposed to feel at this stage?"

"Flutters," Molly said as she stood up. She glanced over at Freddie before turning her attention to her youngest child. "Don't be too concerned if you can't feel the baby kick often. Bill was very quiet and rarely kicked and he turned out just fine. Speaking of Bill, where did he go?" She left the room after that, hunting after her eldest son.

"Fred is so cute," Hermione said, smiling at the baby and grinning when the baby smiled back. "Almost makes me want a baby of my own."

There suddenly was a commotion outside the door and all three women craned their heads, trying to figure out what was going on.

BAM!

The door burst open to reveal a terrified looking Teddy wearing a frog mask and a paper crown. "Ginny!" He cried, scrambling towards his godmother. "Save me! Victoire is trying to get me!"

An extremely startled Ginny asked Teddy what he meant. "Why on earth are you wearing a frog mask?"

"Vic told me I had to be a frog because she's the beautiful princess and I'm a prince disguised as a frog and she has to kiss me to break the spell!" Teddy's eyes were wide with fear. "I don't want to be the—"

"PRINCE FROG, WHERE ARE YOU?"

Teddy's face turned white and he hid behind the chair, knocking over a side table in his haste to hide from the four year old.

Victoire entered the room, wearing a pink dress with a red towel draped around her shoulders to resemble a cape. "Where is Prince Frog?" She asked, her blue eyes darting about the room.

"Victoire, what on earth are you doing?" Hermione asked, glancing at Freddie warily as she heard him whimper. "You're scaring the—"

"I FOUND YOU PRINCE FROG!" Victoire yelled gleefully as she managed to spot a sliver of Teddy's blue hair. She dove behind the chair and there were shouts before Teddy ran out of the room as fast as his little legs could carry him.

"COME BACK PRINCE FROG," Victoire yelled as she followed him. "I NEED TO KISS YOU TO BREAK THE SPELL!"

"Like I said," Hermione said to a frazzled Ginny as she handed the crying baby back to his mother. "_Almost_."

xxxxxx

"Gin?"

"Yeah?" Ginny turned towards Harry in bed, hoping that maybe this side would be more comfortable. As a lifelong tummy sleeper, she was finding a hard time sleeping on her side and on her back.

"We need to pick names out for the baby."

"Right now?"

"Yeah," Harry said, moving a strand of hair out of her face.

Ginny grimaced, as this position was also just as uncomfortable. "Alright. We can do that. Do you have any names in mind?"

"Let me hear what names you have in mind first," Harry said as he sat up in bed.

Ginny looked pensive as she plucked at the blankets covering her body. "I had toyed with the name Fred," she admitted. "But obviously it fits George and Angelina's baby better. Then I thought of the name Colin."

"After Colin Creevey?"

"Yeah," Ginny said quietly. "He was always so nice to me."

Harry nodded, drawing Ginny in close to him so that her head was on his shoulder. "That's a nice name. Any other names for a boy?"

"I like Henry and Oliver," she looked up at Harry when she heard him laugh. "What's so funny?" She poked him playfully in the chest.

"Not Oliver. Reminds me of Wood and I still will never forget how maniacal he was during Quidditch. And Henry is too close to my name."

"How about Harry Jr.?" Ginny asked sarcastically.

Harry wrinkled his nose. "Merlin, _no._"

"I was teasing, you prat." Ginny poked him again and squealed when he poked her own side, as she was extremely ticklish. "Don't you tickle me! I might pee on myself. You know how weak my bladder is currently. Your child likes to press against it at the most inconvenient times."

"Oh, so the baby is _my _child now?" Harry sounded amused as he poked her side again.

Ginny swatted his hand away. "Yes. Whenever this baby does something mischievous or naughty, the child is yours."

Harry laughed, running his fingers through her messy hair. "Sure, we'll go with that. Do you have any names you like for a girl?"

"No," Ginny said. "Mainly because I really don't think we're having a girl."

"This doesn't have anything to do with your fear of raising a girl, right?"

Ginny stuck her tongue out at Harry. "_No._ Just call it a mother's intuition. I really think we're having a boy so I've stuck only with boy names."

"You're going to make everyone in the 'Baby Potter is a boy' pot _very _happy if you're correct."

"I know," Ginny said, draping an arm around Harry's body. "Your turn. Do you have any names you particularly like?"

"Two," Harry said. "But it's a first and middle name combination."

"Oh yeah?" Ginny lifted her head to look into Harry's green eyes. "Let's hear it."

"James Sirius," Harry said, watching her reaction carefully.

"James Sirius Potter," Ginny said the name slowly, listening to how it sounded and rolled off her tongue.

"What do you think?" Harry asked anxiously. "I wanted to honor both my dad and my godfather and I figured James Sirius sounded a lot better than Sirius James."

_James Sirius, _Ginny thought to herself. _James. Baby James Sirius Potter. Jay. Jamie. Jimmy. James. _

"I like it," Ginny said slowly, still savoring the name. "Actually, I really like it."

"You do?" Harry's face brightened at her approval. "Really?"

"Yeah," Ginny smiled at Harry, feeling giddy that they agreed upon a name.

Harry's arms tightened around her. "So, if we have a son, his name will be James Sirius?"

"Yes," Ginny laughed. "Merlin help us if this child lives up to his namesake."

"Not only _his _namesake but he will have Weasley blood running through him," Harry pointed out. "Fred and George _are _his uncles after all."

Ginny groaned and buried her face into Harry's chest. "I forgot about that."

"I didn't," Harry said. "But maybe we'll be lucky and—if the baby really is a boy—he'll be a thoughtful, studious child."

Ginny snorted at the thought. _My child? Thoughtful and studious? That's unlikely. _"With his name, that's highly unlikely." She touched her hair and sighed sadly.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked in concern.

"I'm just admiring the color of my hair," Ginny said. "Because Merlin knows, I'm going to go gray before my time."

xxxxxx

"Ready to try again?" Healer Morris asked cheerfully as Harry helped Ginny onto the chair so she could lie back.

"Yes," Ginny said, adjusting herself in the chair so she could get comfortable. "We just want to know so bad."

"I'm guessing family is also dying to know?"

Harry nodded vigorously. "Everyone is placing bets on whether or not the baby is a boy or a girl."

"Elizabeth reckons it's a boy," Ginny said. "But Gwenog thinks it's a girl. The rest of the time is equally as undecided."

Healer Morris looked amused as she pointed her wand at Ginny's stomach. "Well, let's find out. Maybe the baby won't be so shy today."

The baby was just as beautiful as Ginny remembered and the sight of her baby still took her breath away. She didn't think that feeling would ever go away. The fast heartbeat was the next thing they heard and Healer Morris nodded approvingly. "Baby has a good heartbeat. No known abnormalities either. This pregnancy is proceeding very nicely."

Ginny squeezed Harry's hand, pleased to know her baby was healthy and that she was doing a good job taking care of herself.

"Alright, let's do this." The Healer twirled her wand around slowly and the Potters watched as their baby turned in response.

"Oh," Ginny said disappointedly as she saw that the baby had its legs tightly closed again. Next to her, she could see Harry deflate slightly.

"Stubborn, aren't you?" Healer Morris muttered as she tried to coax the baby's legs open. "Come on, little one. Your mummy and daddy want to see what they are dealing w—good. Good!"

To Ginny and Harry's amazement, the baby was responding to whatever Healer Morris was doing and the baby's tiny legs were loosening just enough that Healer Morris could catch a glimpse.

"It's a boy!" She exclaimed, laughing as the baby's legs were tightly closed again. "You are extremely modest, it is quite amusing."

_It's a boy. It's a boy. It's a boy. _Ginny was dazed just thinking about it. _I'm going to have a son. _

Next to her, Harry was smiling so widely that Ginny was sure that his cheeks would hurt. Seeing Harry so happy brought tears to her eyes. She squeezed his hand and smiled at him when he turned to her. "I was right," she laughed. "We're going to have a boy."

Harry leaned over to kiss her on the lips. "A boy." He sounded giddy. "A boy."

Ginny looked back at her baby and blinked back the tears. _Hello James Sirius, _she thought to herself. _Your father and I really, really cannot wait to meet you._

xxxxxx

**Don't forget to review! **


	7. Month Six

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_May 2005_

"No, Ron. For the thousandth time, I am not dressing my baby in Cannons attire."

Ginny's brother looked disgruntled as he held up the tiny orange shirt he had bought for his sister's baby. "Why the hell not?"

"Because I do not want Gwenog on my arse. She specifically told me that the baby was not to be seen in anything other than Harpies clothes."

"What if the baby is a boy?"

"Still going to be dressed in Harpies clothes," Ginny said. "The Harpies do pay the bills. Ergo, I will happily dress my child in their apparel."

Ron snorted but didn't back down. "When that baby visits Hermione and I, I'll put a Cannons shirt on it."

"Don't call my baby an 'it', Ronald." Ginny's eyes flashed dangerously.

Ron held up his hands defensively. "Sorry! I wouldn't have to if your suddenly modest child would just show the bits."

Ginny rolled her eyes. She and Harry were planning on telling the family at the Weasley family dinner that they were expecting a boy. She knew her family would be thrilled, as now the grandchildren would be evened out. Plus, the Potters couldn't wait to see how much money was bet on the sex of their baby.

"Your baby will wear Cannons clothes," Ron warned as he put the shirt back in his pocket. "Every nephew and niece of mine has worn a Cannons shirt and I do not plan on ending it now." He spied Harry coming down the stairs and he zeroed in on him. "Harry! Don't you want your child wearing Cannons colors?"

"Er," Harry's eyes darted toward Ginny.

"That's right," Ron said, ignoring the fact that Harry had not given him a straight answer. "See? Harry will back me up."

"Yeah, okay," Ginny snorted. "Harry won't say anything if he knows what is good for him."

"Harry thinks that the shirt is a nice gesture," the man in question said firmly. "And that the baby can wear the shirt whenever Ron and Hermione baby-sit. Sound fair?"

"As long as they don't take my baby out and the baby is photographed, I'm fine." Ginny nearly slipped, almost mentioning the baby's gender but she saved herself at the last moment. She couldn't spill the beans now. She wanted to tell everyone at once to see how excited they would get.

Ron looked pleased and shook Harry's hand enthusiastically. "Cheers, mate. I knew you would understand." He checked his watch and cursed. "Shit, I'm late. Hermione is going to murder me. I'll see you guys on Sunday." With that, he spun on his heel and left.

Ginny sniffed. "That shirt is hideous. If our son has my hair, it will clash horribly."

Harry laughed softly and leaned forward to kiss her gently, resting his hand on her rounded stomach. He kept his hand there for a second too long and Ginny tipped her head up, looking at him. "You're trying to see if he'll kick for you."

"Yes," Harry sighed, looking disappointed. He retracted his hand and Ginny's heart went out to him. Baby James had first started kicking a few days back and it had excited Ginny to no end. Until James started kicking her ribcage—which _hurt. _However, when she had excitedly gone to Harry and told him to feel, James stopped his crazy kicking.

Ever since then, whenever Harry tried to feel the baby kick, James wouldn't. Ginny could tell Harry was disappointed and she so desperately wanted Harry to feel. She tried to show him how it felt by taking his arm and tapping her fingers on the skin. But she knew it wasn't the same thing.

"We really need to start decorating the nursery," Ginny said, switching the subject to something happier. "The room is so plain and James will be here before we know it!"

Harry smirked as Ginny tugged on his arm, making him follow her upstairs into the spare bedroom adjacent to their room. "Look at this room," Ginny said as she pushed open the door to reveal a plain room with a bed, nightstand and a wardrobe. "How can we _possibly _allow James to sleep in here if it is not ready for him?"

_Oh Merlin, _Harry thought to himself as he looked around the room. Their house had three bedrooms: one for Harry and Ginny, another for Teddy when he spent the night and the last bedroom was for guests but now it would be the nursery.

"Blue walls," Ginny said suddenly. "Yes, blue walls. Forget-me-not blue—no no! A light blue, like the sky on a beautiful day. But not a blue so deep that it looks harsh. No, a soft blue that screams 'a baby sleeps in here'." She paused, dreamily looking about the room. "Should we paint Quidditch hoops in the room too? Make it look like a Quidditch nursery. Yes, I like that. We can add grass too! I should write to Dean—I think he would enjoy a project like this. He does love to draw."

"Wait, wait," Harry said, cutting into the conversation. "So the nursery will be a Quidditch theme?"

"Yes!" Ginny said happily, clapping her hands. "I know, it's overdone but think of how _cute _it will look! It's obvious James will play Quidditch too. Look at his parents, after all. You were the youngest Seeker in a century and I play for the Harpies. Anyway, we can buy his cot but his mobile could have tiny Quaffles and Snitches and—"

"Ginny!" Harry interrupted her by clapping his hand over his mouth. "Ginny, hush."

The redhead looked disgruntled and pried his hand away from her mouth. "Why?"

"Look as much as I love Quidditch, what you're suggesting is Quidditch overload."

xxxxxx

"What do you get a child," Ginny said to Hermione, "when said child has everything she could ever ask for?"

Hermione, who was busily scanning the shelves at Flourish and Blotts, selected a book and straightened up. "You're talking about Victoire, right?"

"Yes, of course!"

"Buy her a book," Hermione said, showing Ginny the children's book that she picked out. "No child can have too many books."

Ginny arched an eyebrow. "Hermione, you turned one of your spare bedrooms into a library so crammed with books that there is no more space."

"Again, no child can have too many books." Hermione said breezily. "So, buy her a book. She'll cherish it for years. Hopefully she'll be a voracious reader and not be too focused on her looks when she gets older." She sniffed and momentarily looked annoyed before her features smoothed out.

"Vic likes Quidditch, doesn't she?" Ginny asked, ignoring Hermione's selling of a book gift. "I can always get her a toy broom—"

"Didn't Charlie get her that when she turned two?"

"Yeah but that was a _baby _broom. Toy brooms change for each age group. Now that she's five, there is a better broom for her."

Hermione rolled her eyes and headed to the register. "Ridiculous. But, go on. Ron bought Vic a Cannons shirt. I think she is the only one so far who actually enjoys the Cannons as much as Ron. I'm going to pay for this book and I'll meet you there."

"Alright," Ginny said as she exited the shop and walked towards Quality Quidditch Supplies, envisioning the broom she was going to buy her niece. She couldn't wait to put her own son on his very first broom. She knew he would love it…

_Speaking of brooms, I need to write to Dean. He would do an excellent job in the nursery. I don't care what Harry says—there is no such thing as Quidditch over—_

Not paying attention to where she was going, she collided into someone.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Ginny yelped as she stumbled backwards, her hands immediately covering her stomach protectively. "I am so, so sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going." She looked down to see whom she knocked into and she was stunned to look into the face of Cho Chang.

The name Cho Chang used to make Ginny fly into a jealous (albeit silent) rage. She viewed Cho as her competition and she disliked the smart, pretty Ravenclaw. She had complained about her excessively to Hermione. It wasn't until she started dating Harry that her jealousy issues over Cho diminished as she realized that Harry didn't have feelings for Cho anymore and that she was being ridiculous for hating Cho on principle.

However, seeing Cho for the first time in several years made the sleeping dragon in her chest awaken slightly. However, she put aside her feelings and helped the woman up. After all, she _did _knock the woman over.

From the look on Cho's face, the woman was just as shocked to see Ginny standing in front of her also. However, she hid it quickly and accepted Ginny's hand. "Thank you," she said as she got to her feet and dusted herself off.

"No problem," Ginny said as she eyed Cho up and down. As much as Ginny hated to admit it—Cho looked great. Her body was trim and fit with her stylish clothes highlighting and accenting her figure. Her inky black hair was long, sleek and shiny and she was wearing just the right amount of makeup that her features really popped.

Ginny cursed herself for the outfit she had chosen today for the outing with Hermione. She wore a Harpies training shirt (that she magically expanded to fit her growing stomach), a pair of jeans and her trusty ratty old trainers. She would have worn sandals but her feet were becoming so swollen that she didn't want to show them off to the public. Her hair was sloppily braided down her back with pieces of her red hair falling into her face.

In short, Ginny felt like a fat slob compared to how effortlessly pretty Cho looked.

"How are you?" Cho asked, grabbing her fallen bags. "Congratulations on your pregnancy. I read about it in the papers. You and Harry must be so excited."

"We are, thank you," Ginny said, remembering her manners. _Mum would be so proud. _"And I am doing well. On maternity leave because pregnant witches shouldn't be playing Quidditch, after all."

"Right," Cho said, smiling slightly. "Well it's all for the greater good after all. You only have to be on leave for ten to eleven months and then you get to go back and play."

"Yeah," Ginny said. "How are you? Work treating you well?"

Cho nodded, running her fingers through her hair and pulling it away from her face. "I just got back from Paris a day ago and in two days, I have to travel to Moscow and then Los Angeles."

"Oh wow," Ginny said, making an approving sound. "Sounds fun."

"Yeah," Cho sighed. "It is fun but it is also exhausting too. Traveling the world isn't as fun and glamorous as everyone makes it out to be."

"I bet," Ginny remarked, pushing some hair out of her face. "I would miss being around my family."

"Yeah, I do too." Cho said, moving her bags to one hand. "Anyway, it was nice running into you—literally."

Ginny's face turned red. "Yeah, about that. I am so sorry, once again. I need to watch where I'm going."

Cho laughed, a sound that reminded Ginny of tinkling bells. Cho's laugh was much more pleasing than Ginny's witch-like cackle. "It's okay, honestly. It was so nice catching up. Hopefully, soon I will be able to read about Baby Potter's birth. Have a good day, Ginny."

"Yeah, you too, Cho." Ginny said, waving slightly as Cho smiled at her and walked away.

xxxxxx

The Burrow was crammed with people and Ginny's ears felt like they were going to bleed from all the chatter. Molly and Arthur Weasley knew how to throw a fantastic party but they went all out when it came to their grandchildren's birthdays.

There were a bunch of children's games outside in the expansive yard as George and Charlie levitated tables onto the ground.

"Molly!" Percy shouted. "Molly Penelope, get out of the way before you get hit by the chairs!"

Two and a half year old Molly giggled and fled the scene, running after Teddy and Victoire, screaming her head off.

Ginny sat by Angelina, who was holding baby Fred. The baby was a little chunker with impossibly chubby cheeks and delicious thigh rolls. His hair was coming in, black and curly, and his mouth was always stretched in a giant smile. Currently, the baby was watching his cousins run around and his uncle and father try to place the chairs properly, giggling whenever the chairs smashed together.

Ginny stroked his cheek tenderly and smiled at the baby. "He's so cute, it should be illegal."

"I know," Angelina said proudly, kissing the top of Fred's head. "He's angelic now but he's a little brat at night."

Ginny hummed in response, turning her head to see Harry talking to Ron in the corner, with Hermione close by.

"What did you buy Victoire?" Angelina asked.

"Toy broomstick."

"Damn," Angelina cursed. "I just got her some clothes. I'm clueless when it comes to little girl stuff. Especially since Victoire is spoiled rotten as it is."

"Bill and Fleur are remaining tight lipped on their present for Vic," Ginny said. "I tried getting it out of Bill but he told me to bugger off. He probably just doesn't want to admit that I probably got his kid the best present."

Angelina snorted and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, okay Ginny. You keep thinking that."

Twenty minutes—and one table groaning with food later—the entire Weasley clan was sitting down to eat, sitting elbow to elbow. As the birthday girl, Victoire sat at the head of the table, beaming proudly. She wore a play crown on her head and had her pink birthday scepter lying next to her plate.

Ginny sat by Harry, their seats closer to Victoire's. The five year old had demanded to pick where everyone would sit for dinner and as the birthday girl, she got her wish. Ginny suspected she and Harry were so close to Victoire because of a certain Teddy Lupin but then again, the girl could just want her favorite aunt and uncle next to her…

It was unlikely but it was a nice thought nonetheless.

"So," Molly said from the other end of the table. "Ginny, Harry."

"Mum," Ginny said, nodding her head at her mother.

"Have you found out the baby's gender? Should I start knitting a blue or pink jumper?"

Ginny glanced at Harry and her husband slid his hand into hers, squeezing it comfortingly. "As a matter of fact, we have."

Everyone perked up at that—including the birthday girl. Victoire loved babies and she had been so excited when the Potters announced they were expecting.

"Well?" Ron called. "Out with it already!"

Harry fought a smirk as he knew what he would say next would cause an uproar. "Well, see, we can't tell you."

As expected, there was an uproar with everyone asking why not. Victoire chimed in herself. "Uncle Harry!" She yelled, holding up her scepter threateningly. "It's my birthday and I wanna know!"

Harry hid his laughter before turning to the family and saying, "I can't tell you but I can show you."

"What the bloody hell are you talking ab—OUCH! Angelina, don't hit me."

"Don't curse in front of impressionable young children," Angelina hissed at George.

"What Harry is talking about is that the baby's gender will be revealed in that cake I brought over." Ginny said, enjoying how red her mother's face was becoming. She could see her itching to run to the kitchen to cut the cake herself. "And Mum, don't you dare go and get it. I'll get it after we finish dinner."

She had never seen any group of people eat so fast in her life—and she grew up with _Ron. _

When the dinner plates were cleared from the table and everyone had some time to digest their food, Ginny, Hermione and Mrs. Weasley brought the desserts out, with Ginny firmly holding her cake.

Mrs. Weasley certainly outdid herself when it came to the desserts—along with Fleur. Victoire's mother was an amazing baker and she had brought along homemade crème brulee and her mouthwatering punitions, which were a French shortbread biscuit. They were _insanely _good and one of Ginny's favorite desserts. She had begged Fleur for the recipe, but her sister-in-law refused, saying it was a secret family recipe. Ginny eyed the biscuits hungrily and made a mental note to steal as many as she could for later.

After a rousing rendition of 'Happy Birthday', the family tucked into their desserts and Ginny helped herself to every thing on the table—except her cake. She planned on cutting that last.

Once everyone had a sufficient amount of dessert (unless your name was Ronald Weasley, therefore, you never stopped stuffing your face), there was a call for the white butter-cream cake to be cut.

"Come on now," Charlie said, rubbing his hands in anticipation. "I have money bet on this and I _know _this baby is going to be a girl."

"Unlikely," Bill snorted. "It's a boy."

"Cut the ruddy cake already!" Ron bellowed, ducking as Hermione tried to whack him.

Teddy laughed before tugging on Ginny's blouse. "Can I help you cut the cake?" He asked sweetly.

Ginny kissed his head tenderly. "Of course you can. C'mon, let's do it."

Together, Harry, Ginny and Teddy sunk the sharp knife into the cake and pulled it back before placing it in the cake again to cut the other side. Ginny glanced up to see everyone's eyes glued to the cake.

"Get a plate, Teddy," she whispered to the boy and when Teddy handed it to her, she slowly brought the slice out to reveal a white butter cream frosting with a blue sponge on the inside.

The entire table went _mad. _

Those who had bet that the baby would be a boy were beside themselves with glee. Those who bet that the baby would be a girl were not exactly thrilled. Molly and Arthur rushed over to the couple and hugged them tightly with Molly crying into their shoulders.

"I KNEW IT!" Ron roared as he clapped his best friend on the back and hugged his sister. "I ruddy knew it and I was right. OY! CHARLIE! Cough up the money!"

Everyone soon came up to congratulate the couple on their impending baby boy. Angelina was overjoyed at the realization that the Potters were having a boy. "Freddie and your baby will be at Hogwarts together!" She said happily.

Once the commotion died down and everyone had another round of dessert, the presents came out for Victoire to open.

The little girl opened each present with delight, squealing at every gift she received. She gave everyone hugs and kisses for each parcel she unwrapped and ignored Molly's complaints to her parents on how she wanted to open up presents and it was just _not fair. _

When Victoire unwrapped the Potters gift, she nearly screamed with delight and excitedly showed off the broomstick. Bill looked pleased with the gift while Fleur had a look of horror on her face. Ginny knew that a broomstick was not what she wanted her daughter to have. Fleur thought the sport was incredibly dangerous.

"Papa, I wanna ride it _now_," she demanded, holding the broomstick up to her father.

"Later," Bill promised. "Maman and I still haven't given you your gift yet."

Victoire's eyes went wide as she looked around at the ground. The Potters present had been last so there were no other shiny boxes around. "Where is it?" She asked.

Bill grinned at his wife. "In eight months," Bill said to Victoire. "You're going to have a new playmate. Maman is having a baby."

Once again, total chaos broke out as everyone scrambled to congratulate the happy couple.

"Blimey," Ron said to Harry and Ginny as he was elbowed out of the way by other family members. "What is in the _water _around here?"

xxxxxx

"That was a nice party," Harry said to his wife as they lay in bed following the party. "Great food, good company and of course, a very happy birthday girl."

"Mmm," Ginny nodded her agreement, her hands rubbing her stomach. Thanks to her full-body pillow, she could now comfortably lay on her back for more than a few minutes without getting uncomfortable. It was a beautiful feeling.

"That was shocking to hear about Bill and Fleur's pregnancy," Harry admitted. "Although I wasn't surprised to hear that another bet is being placed."

Ginny snorted and looked over at Harry. "Look at who started the bet—_Charlie. _He needs to save face after incorrectly guessing that our baby is a boy."

Harry laughed and laced his fingers with Ginny's, resting them on her stomach. "I don't think I'm going to get involved in this bet."

"Why not? I already bet five Galleons on another girl."

Harry rolled his eyes. "That and there is another bet on how much James is going to weigh."

"_What_? Does my family not have anything else better to do with their time?"

"Apparently not. But I'll tell you this—so far the majority of people are betting that you're going to deliver a heavy baby."

"This is ridiculous," Ginny grumbled.

The two were quiet for a moment before Ginny spoke up. "I saw Cho today at Diagon Alley."

"Oh?" Harry retracted his hand to scratch his nose.

"Yeah. We literally ran into each other."

Harry laughed. "Well, that's a good way to get someone to talk to you. How did it go?"

"Pretty well—considering the fact that she and I really never talked at Hogwarts. She's busy as normal, country hopping for her job."

Harry nodded. "Yes, she works for the International Affairs Office. I see her sometimes at the Ministry."

"She looks good," Ginny said, remembering how fashionable and fit Cho looked.

Harry glanced at Ginny before pulling her close to him, resting his cheek on top of her head. "Gin, you don't think that she's prettier or better than you, do you?"

Ginny was silent.

"Oh Ginny," Harry sighed, running his fingers through her hair. "Don't you compare yourself to Cho. Yes, Cho is pretty, but she's very bland too. There isn't much substance to her personality wise. You, on the other hand, are not only beautiful but pack a punch too." He chuckled softly and pressed a kiss to her head. "You're twenty times the woman that Cho is and I don't ever want you to think that she's better than you in any way, shape or form."

"Alright, alright," Ginny said, her cheeks pink from Harry's praise. She wouldn't lie—she was also _very _pleased that Harry said she was better than Cho. She knew it but it was always nice to _hear _it too. "I promise I won't—Oh!" She paused and placed her hand over her stomach.

"What?" Harry asked in concern.

Ginny shushed him as she felt around her stomach again, pressing in on the skin. "The baby just kicked—and it _hurt_, by the way—and I'm trying to make him kick—aha!" She seized Harry's hand and placed it on her stomach.

"Ginny, he won't kick for me."

"Hush," Ginny instructed. "Be patient."

The two lay in silence, waiting for the baby's movement with baited breath. After a few moments passed with no kick, Harry sighed disappointedly. "I told you it—"

The baby kicked at that exact moment, right under Harry's hand and it stole Harry's breath away.

Ginny wished she could have taken a picture of Harry's face. He looked so delighted that it nearly moved her to tears.

_Ruddy hormones. _

xxxxxx

**Neh, what am I talking about. I like this story too much to not update—it's so much fun to write. **

**Review, people! It makes me happy and makes me write faster!**


	8. Month Seven

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_June 2005_

She had been staring at Harry for the past ten minutes and it was starting to unnerve him.

At first, he had ignored it. As Ginny's pregnancy progressed she began to space out more as she found herself lost in her thoughts. It had worried Harry at first but now he was used to it.

However, _this _stare was much different than the blank stares that Ginny adopted when she was thinking. This stare was much more predatory—much like Crookshanks looked whenever he spotted a particularly appetizing mouse.

Harry put down his report and whistled softly to get Ginny's attention. "Do I have something on my face?" He asked.

If anything, Ginny's smile widened—something that really confused Harry as he felt around on his face. "Oh no," she said as she struggled to stand up on her own. "No, nothing is on your face. _However,_" she crossed the room and placed her hands on Harry's shoulders, giving him a tantalizing view of her cleavage. "You do have something I like hiding _beneath_ your trousers.

Harry quickly understood what she was alluding too and within seconds, the Potters were hurrying towards their bedroom, slamming the door shut. Ever since Ginny reached her seventh month of pregnancy, her libido had reawakened and she wanted to have sex at every given opportunity.

Not like Harry was complaining, of course.

xxxxxx

"Why does it have to be so _bloody hot_?" Ginny grouched to Elizabeth as they sat on Elizabeth's back porch, Ginny reclining on a chair so her poor, swollen feet could get a break.

Elizabeth snickered as she sipped at her lemonade. "It isn't _too _hot out here—"

"Bollocks. _Hell _is cooler than this."

The brunette rolled her eyes and lifted her sunglasses so she could look at her friend. "You only feel this way because you're pregnant."

"Don't remind me," Ginny said irritably. "Harry just _had _to get me pregnant in November. Now, I'll be pregnant for the majority of the summer. This is unfair."

"Stop complaining," Elizabeth said as she took out her wand to place a Cooling Charm on her friend. "There. Better?"

"Much," Ginny sighed in relief as her body cooled down in response to the charm. "You're the best, Liz. I don't trust my magic right now. Every spell or charm that I produce is just a bit too powerful. I tried casting my own Cooling Charm and I had ice covering my body."

Elizabeth tipped her head back and laughed. "Oh, I'm sure that was priceless."

"It was. George said it gave a whole new meaning to Ice Queen." She smirked. "However, I've found that my Bat-Bogey curse is _very _effective in shutting big, pesky brothers up."

"Cheers," Elizabeth tipped her glass at Ginny. "So, how is the nursery progressing?"

Ginny brightened at the topic. The nursery was fast becoming her _favorite _room in the house. "Dean did _such _a good job. I cried when I saw the finished product, as Harry and Dean wouldn't allow me to enter the room while he was painting. Something about how the fumes aren't good for the baby."

"Yeah, Leah would probably beat you senseless if she knew you were entering a room where noxious paint fumes lurked," Elizabeth said. "So, how does it look?"

"It's _beautiful. _The walls are this gorgeous baby blue and on one side of the wall are paintings of the Quidditch pitch. Players zoom in too all over the wall."

"What teams?"

"Harpies and Gryffindor, of course." Ginny said, sticking her tongue out when Elizabeth pouted. "Why would I put Hufflepuff on my baby's nursery wall when I wasn't even in the House? When you have a baby, you can put Hufflepuff in the nursery."

Elizabeth wrinkled her nose. "Ick, no way. I don't want a baby right now. Too much work. I'm content right now with being an auntie to David's kids. And of course, I happily look forward to spoiling your kid."

Ginny rolled her eyes and continued on with her nursery design. "The cot and the dressers haven't come in yet but I have already got the rocking chair set up and I've started hanging up clothes in the closet. They're so _tiny_ and I already have so much for him. My sisters have gone clothes shopping _crazy _for the baby. And of course, you wonderful bints graced me with a tiny Harpies jersey for the baby."

Elizabeth bowed. "It was my idea too. I don't care what Gwenog said."

The week before, Ginny had been invited to a Harpies practice where the entire team got together and gave Ginny a miniature Harpies outfit for Baby Potter. "We fully expect the baby to be dressed in this when he comes to his first Quidditch match," Gwenog said as she handed the clothes to Ginny. The redhead had cried, of course, touched by her team's thoughtfulness.

She had also told Harry that she definitely planned on dressing James in that jersey around Ron so she could see how red his ears turned. That never ceased to amuse her.

Suddenly, Elizabeth's husband, Tom, appeared at the doorway. He looked slightly amused as he opened the door. "Hey Lizzie, there's a woman at the front door calling herself Hermione Weasley. She says Ginny was supposed to meet her forty-five minutes ago at some Muggle restaurant and never showed up."

There was a pregnant (excuse the pun) pause as both Elizabeth and Ginny digested the news. Elizabeth started to laugh while Ginny froze. "_Shit,_" she hissed as she attempted to scramble up, failing miserably due to her girth. "I completely forgot about the lunch date we had set up! _Shit. _Hermione's going to kill me—"

Twenty minutes and one miffed Hermione later, the two women sat inside a burger joint and enjoyed cheeseburgers and chips. Ginny couldn't stop apologizing.

"I'm sorry," she said as she dipped her chip into ketchup. "Honestly, I completely forgot! You know I would never purposely forget our lunch dates." She brandished her chip at her head, some ketchup flying off the fried potato and settling on her temple. "I blame it on the pregnancy hormones!"

Hermione sighed and the angry lines around her eyebrows smoothed out. "Alright, I forgive you _this time_," she stressed those two words. "But next time, write it down, please? The waiter at the other restaurant assumed that I got stood up by some bloke." She sniffed, irritated at the memory. "Couldn't he see I am wearing an engagement and wedding ring?"

"Apparently not," Ginny said as she munched on her chip, relieved that her sister-in-law forgave her for her idiocy. She decided to get Hermione's mind off the waiter and Ginny's tardiness. "So, how has work been?"

xxxxxx

Harry was once again working late tonight so Ginny had the house to herself. Usually when Harry was working late, she would head to the Quidditch pitch and work on dives and throws for hours. Or she would head to the Burrow and let her mother fuss over her.

However, as her pregnancy progressed, Ginny found herself growing sleepier and sleepier throughout the day. Pregnancy really did take a lot out of her and she found herself going to bed around eight thirty normally. Her mother did say to get as much sleep as possible while she could because Merlin knows when she would get a decent night's sleep when James was born.

After cooking tomato soup, Ginny took a large mug of the soup into the living room and sunk down into her couch, sighing luxuriously as she put her feet up. Turning on her TV, she flipped through the channels until she saw some stupid reality show called "The Simpleton Life" on. Taking a sip of her soup, Ginny watched the show and grew more and more aghast with the behavior of the two 'stars.' "Who the hell are these tacky girls?" Ginny wondered aloud. "And why on earth are they purposely embarrassing themselves?"

After a few more minutes, Ginny couldn't take anymore of the 'adventures' of the American socialites and she flipped the channel to the Muggle news. Sighing, Ginny sipped her soup again and watched curiously.

_Tap, tap. _

Ginny looked up to see Angelina's owl, Sparrow, at her window with a letter in his beak. Grasping her wand, Ginny unlocked the window with magic and watched as Sparrow flew in, landing on her shoulder and extending his leg so that Ginny could take the letter.

"Thanks," she said as she set her cup of soup down to open the letter. She grimaced when Sparrow hopped over and dipped his face into the full mug. "Thanks, Sparrow. I kind of really wanted that soup. But go on, you can have the soup now as you've put your germs in it."

Sparrow hooted and dipped his beak back into the mug, enjoying the hot meal.

Ginny grumbled about stupid, soup-stealing birds as she opened the letter and began to read:

_Ginny,_

_Remember when you came over when Fred was first born and I told you that I would allow you to baby-sit him when the time was right? Well, that time is now. George and I would like a night to ourselves—sans Freddie, of course—and we were wondering if you and Harry wouldn't mind watching the baby. George says that if you baby-sit Freddie, he'll allow you to purchase whatever you want at the store. Don't listen to him. Obviously, we'll pay you for watching Freddie. _

_Angelina _

Ginny rummaged around in the side table for a quill and produced one triumphantly. Summoning her inkpot, she wrote back to Angelina:

_Angie,_

_Of course we would watch Freddie! Merlin knows Harry and I need the practice, as I'm due in only two months. _

_And you will not pay us for watching our nephew. If you try, I will hex you._

_Ginny _

xxxxxx

Harry had been completely on board with baby-sitting Baby Fred so at five thirty; Angelina and George arrived at the Potter home with Angelina carrying the infant and George carrying the baby bag and a portable cot.

Ginny exclaimed over the baby and held her arms out for him, grinning when Freddie squealed and allowed her to take him. "That's right, you know who your favorite aunt is," Ginny cooed to the baby as she rocked him. "Although, I would appreciate you to not tug on my hair." She pried Fred's tiny fingers out of her hair, wincing as she did so.

"Yeah, good luck with that." Angelina snorted as she straightened out her shirt. "Either clip your hair short or put it in a ponytail. Freddie's very grabby."

George set down the baby bag and the portable cot and shook Harry's hand enthusiastically. "Thanks a bunch, mate, for minding Freddie while Angelina and I get a night to ourselves. This taking care of a baby thing is _exhausting_—"

"Give me a break, George. _You _weren't the one to get up three times last night due to the baby's cries." Angelina said sharply.

George looked sheepish before winking at Harry and taking out extra bottles and nappies as Angelina began to explain Freddie's schedule and his likes and dislikes. "He usually goes down to bed at about eight thirty after he's fed, bathed and rocked. He sleeps with his stuffed Beater's bat and I'm pretty sure we packed—we did? Good. For dinner, he'll eat the pureed peas and for breakfast he'll have cereal. He likes to spit food out so just watch him and—"

"Angie," George said, tugging on his wife's arm impatiently. "They know. They've been around Fred before."

Angelina suddenly looked tearful as it dawned on her that she was leaving her baby behind for an entire night. "Are you sure this is—"

"_Yes._" He tugged on her arm impatiently again. "C'mon. We'll be late for dinner if we don't go now."

Angelina pressed what seemed like a thousand kisses to the baby's head. "I love you, Freddie. Mummy will be back in the morning, don't worry."

"Maybe Mummy will also be pregnant with your baby brother or sister too," Ginny said in a singsong voice, grinning as Harry fought his laughter.

George's eyes widened and he snorted. "Yeah, no way. Not for years. Come _on_, Angie."

With last minute instructions, tears and kisses, Angelina and George left the house, shutting the door behind them.

"Well," Harry said as he examined the contents of the baby bag. "We now have a baby with us for the entire night. This should be interesting."

Ginny tossed her head, getting her hair off her shoulders so that Freddie wouldn't be tempted to pull it. "He's only four months old," Ginny said as she blew a raspberry onto the baby's cheek, grinning when she made him squeal with laughter. "How hard could this be?"

xxxxxx

_Sometimes, I need to learn to keep my bloody mouth shut_, Ginny grumbled to herself as she heard Freddie start to wail. Opening her eyes, Ginny saw that it was only three thirty. "Bloody hell," she murmured as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

"Do you want me to get him?" Harry had heard the baby too and rolled over, his voice thick with sleep.

"No," Ginny said, touching her husband's bare shoulder. "No, go back to bed. I'll get Freddie."

"If he wakes up again, I'll get him." Harry smiled sleepily at her before closing his eyes and going back to sleep.

Ginny unsteadily got up and shuffled towards the nursery where Freddie was staying. The cries only got louder as she approached the room and reached their crescendo when she opened the door.

"Hey, don't cry," Ginny said as she moved towards Freddie's cot and looked down at him. The baby was dressed in a blue sleeper and his stuffed Beater's bat was thrown across the cot. Freddie's face was wet with tears as he cried. "What's wrong, little one?" She lifted him up and placed him on her shoulder, rubbing his back soothingly. She sniffed the baby and decided that he didn't need a nappy change. "Are you hungry?"

The baby's only response was to continue to cry.

"It would be _so _much easier if you could talk," Ginny sighed as she took the baby downstairs so she could warm up a bottle for him. "That's why I like it when Teddy stays over as he can _verbalize _what the issue is. With you, I can't even distinguish your cries."

Molly Weasley had always said that a baby has distinct cries to tell the parents what was wrong with the infant. Ginny didn't understand _how _anyone could tell the difference. Baby cries all sounded the same to her.

"You make me really, really nervous for my upcoming baby," Ginny muttered as she turned the lights on in the kitchen. The sudden burst of light made Ginny's eyes hurt and she cursed under her breath. "Because I can give you back to your Mummy and Daddy. I can't give back my baby."

Freddie's response was to only cry harder.

"Alright, _alright. _Don't get your nappy in a twist." Ginny quickly charmed the bottle so that it was the perfect drinking temperature and she moved as fast as she could upstairs again so she could sit and feed the baby. "You remind me of your uncle Ron when he gets hungry. He gets irritable and prone to crankiness if he hasn't eaten in a while. And a while to Ron is about an hour or so."

Reaching the nursery, Ginny plopped her arse down in the rocking chair and elevated her feet too. Adjusting the baby, Ginny held the bottle against Fred's lips and hoped that he would take it.

Thankfully, he did and Freddie's ear-splitting cries vanished and the only sounds the baby made were his frantic sucking down of milk.

Ginny sighed in relief and started to rock slowly, feeling very tired. "You babies are so needy," she whispered. "Maybe I'll just stick with one child. My Jimmy won't need a sibling, right? Ah, what do you care? You can't even understand me."

Once Freddie drank his bottle, Ginny burped him and watched him drift back off to sleep.

_Thank Merlin, _Ginny thought wearily to herself as she left the room quietly and crawled back into bed. Finding a somewhat comfortable position, Ginny drifted off to sleep again…

…Only to reawake a few hours later with sunlight streaming into her bedroom as James kicked her.

Squinting at the clock, Ginny made out the time to be eight fifteen.

"Ugh," she groaned as she rubbed her stomach, wincing as she felt another of her son's kicks. "James, please, quit. Mummy had an awful night with your cousin."

James responded by kicking Ginny especially hard in the stomach and the woman bit down on her finger to stop herself from yelping.

Suddenly, the bed felt a lot emptier than it had when she stumbled back into bed after feeding Freddie. Turning her head, Ginny saw that Harry's side was empty and it looked like he hadn't slept there in some time.

Curious, Ginny pushed herself off the bed, groaning and huffing as she did so. She hated how clumsy she was because of her pregnancy. Ginny had never been a graceful swan but she also wasn't normally prone to knocking everything down.

Opening her bedroom door, Ginny peeked into the adjoining bathroom and saw that the door was open. There was no telltale smell of shampoo or the humidity of warm water so Ginny knew that Harry hadn't showered either.

She pushed open the door to the nursery, wanting to check on Freddie, and she came upon a beautiful sight.

There, in the nursery, she found her husband sleeping in the rocking chair, head tilted back as he snored softly. Nestled in his arms was a still slumbering Baby Freddie, his tiny arms curled around his stuffed Beater's bat protectively.

_He stuck to his promise, _Ginny thought to herself as she watched the two sleep. _I wonder what time Freddie woke up—I didn't even hear him. _

Not wanting to disturb them, Ginny shut the door quietly and padded down the stairs to the kitchen. "You just wait until you come out, James." Ginny said to her unborn son. "You are going to have the best daddy ever."

xxxxxx

It was another miserably hot day and Ginny decided to stay inside at all costs. Ginny normally did her best to avoid extremely hot and sunny conditions. Her fair skin made her prone to wicked sunburns. That, and she wasn't a big fan of the heat. She always hated Quidditch practices this time of the year. They were awful as Gwenog was still as relentless as ever.

Glancing at the clock, Ginny saw that it was almost one. Harry had asked her to go out to lunch with him and she had happily agreed. She hated being cooped up sometimes and anytime she could see Harry, she would take up on it.

Humming a Muggle tune, Ginny stepped out of the shower and towel dried off before wrapping a towel around her and padded towards her bedroom, in search of something to wear.

As she scoured the closet, Ginny felt a sharp pain in her abdomen and she sighed. _James, quit kicking me so much. It hurts. _

Ignoring her son's kicks, Ginny selected a green tank top and a flowy white skirt. Usually, Ginny abhorred skirts and did everything in her power to _not _wear them. However, she was now nearly eight months pregnant. And it was hot. She felt she had an excuse to wear the dreaded article of clothing.

Taking her hair out of the towel, Ginny felt another stab of pain in her abdomen. This one was so severe that she had to lean against the wall for support as she gasped for air.

"What the hell was that?" Ginny wondered to herself, lifting her shirt to stare at her stomach. "No way was that the baby's kicks."

She waited a few moments before taking a deep breath and calmed herself down. Maybe she had painful gas buildup from last night's bean burrito.

Deciding that was it, Ginny focused on twisting her wet hair into a bun, trying to make it look pretty and elegant. However, she was failing as just looked sloppy. Sighing, she took out her wand and muttered a spell, watching as her hair twisted into a simple ponytail.

While doing this and other things around the house, she ignored the pains in her abdomen. She figured they were just gas pains and walking would help get rid of them. Sitting down caused the pain to go away but it started right back up again when she stood.

She was puzzled by this. Her confidence about these pains being gas buildup started to wane as doubt overcame her. "What could this be?" Ginny asked herself as she sat down again, her mind working overtime.

Standing up once more, she tensed as she waited for a pain spasm to come.

But it didn't come.

Relief poured through her as she rubbed her stomach. _It was gas then, _Ginny thought. _It definitely—OW. _

The pain was back and it seemed to be getting _worse. _

There was something unsettling about this pain. Something that left a very bad feeling in Ginny's gut and this unsettling feeling frightened her.

Suddenly, an idea crossed her mind and it scared her so bad that she gripped the table so tight that her knuckles turned white.

xxxxxx

Harry glanced at the clock in his office, counting down the minutes until he could escape for his lunch break. He was definitely looking forward to seeing Ginny. She always had his day so much brighter.

"Dany," Harry called to his secretary and the blonde haired woman leaned back, signifying that she heard her boss. "If anyone comes to find me during my lunch break, tell them to find me after. I am not to be disturbed."

"Will do, Mr. Potter," Dany smiled at Harry and nodded.

Harry returned the smile and stood up, grabbing his cloak and fastening it around him. Finally, he could now leave and see his wife.

There was a shocked gasp that came from Dany and Harry whipped around, wand out, to see a horse Patronus gallop in front of him. Harry's heart leapt into his throat.

The horse's mouth opened and Ginny's frantic voice filled the room.

"Come quick to St. Mungo's. I think I'm in labor."

xxxxxx

**Review! **


	9. Month Eight

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_July 2005_

It was the middle of July. England was going through one hell of a heat wave and, of course, Ginny was still grossly pregnant. Hugely pregnant, mind you. People now liked to come up to Ginny and marvel about how big her stomach was. "You must be having twins!" They would exclaim to a very irritable Ginny.

Ginny would then have to explain that no, she was not carrying twins. Just a very large single baby boy who liked to poke her with his very sharp elbows.

But yes, she was still very pregnant. The pre-term labor she thought she was going through last month? Braxton-Hicks contractions, also known as false labor. She had been _so _embarrassed when the Healer told her this, especially after she had seen how panicked Harry looked when he got her Patronus. Thankfully, he hadn't relayed the information to the entire Weasley clan because she knew they would all descend to St. Mungo's in a heartbeat and Ginny didn't want to deal with that—especially when she wasn't even in labor to begin with.

So, the Potters returned home with instructions about how to differentiate between Braxton-Hicks and actual labor. Ginny still had false labor contractions off and on but she was not educated enough about them to _not _run to the hospital, shrieking about how her baby was coming.

But oh, how Ginny wished her pregnancy could be over at this point because she was _completely _over being pregnant. Her clothes weren't fitting her properly anymore and she always had a few inches of pregnant belly peeking out from under her ill-fitting shirts. The last time she tried to magically make her shirt longer, it ended up turning into a _dress _so she dealt with the whole stomach showing. She was in the home stretch of pregnancy—everyone could deal with a quick glimpse of her very round stomach.

Everyone could also deal with her mood swings, heartburn, nausea and fatigue (you know, the hated first trimester symptoms that came back) because once again, Ginny was pregnant.

She was sleeping horribly too as whenever she slept on her back, one of her limbs would fall asleep due to her crushing body weight. Not only that, but her little darling of a son liked to kick her whenever she managed to close her eyes.

James was becoming so much more active as Ginny neared the final weeks of pregnancy. She and Harry liked to watch Ginny's stomach as the baby kicked, trying to guess if they could spot the baby's toes or knees pressed against his mother's stomach.

"I think that was his big toe," Harry said as he watched Ginny's stomach curiously.

"I would tend to agree with you," Ginny said, wincing as she felt the baby elbow her once again.

Her mother was becoming a lot more ornery too, which baffled Ginny. Molly was now coming by almost every day to check up on the Potters and give some advice to her daughter. "What do you think you are doing?" Molly scolded to Ginny as she caught her daughter cleaning the stove. "You should be lying down! You only have a few weeks left until the baby arrives, you need all the rest you can get!"

But Ginny didn't _want _to rest. There was no time to rest now that the baby's birth was imminent. There was so much to do! Her house was completely filthy, there was the matter of washing all of the baby's clothes too and don't even get her _started _on the state of her lawn.

Her mother called this stage "nesting"— whatever the hell that meant. All Ginny knew was that if she didn't clean her house _this very moment_, she never would once the baby arrived.

Harry was going through his own version of "nesting" too. He had rearranged his office furniture three times and at home, he and Ginny discussed for hours on the importance of turning the living room couch a certain way for maximum sunlight exposure.

It was all terribly amusing to the family—especially to Angelina and Hermione—who caught Ginny one day attacking the tile in the bathroom with an old tooth brush. Angelina had laughed herself silly while Hermione merely giggled at the sight of their friend scrubbing the floor with such gusto.

"Oh shut up, Angie. You weren't pregnant that long ago—didn't you nest?" Ginny asked as she struggled to her feet, accepting Hermione's hand gratefully.

"Of course I nested." Angelina remarked. "But I used magic to clean my house. I didn't do it the Muggle way."

Ginny threw her toothbrush into the bathtub and washed her hands in the sink. "Magic just doesn't clean the way the Muggle version can. I know when I personally clean my floors or windows, they're definitely going to be spotless."

This "nesting" business also kept Ginny's mind busy. Harry had been gone for a week and a half now on a mission to South America and Ginny missed him terribly. She was normally an anxious person to begin with but pregnancy only heightened it. She had nightmares of Aurors in dark robes coming to her door to inform her that Harry had been killed and she would be forced to raise the baby on her own. She also had nightmares of her baby being stillborn and she would wake up in tears, fearing the worst. However, she was quickly reminded that her son was still alive and well when he would swiftly quick her, almost as if he knew that his mother was upset.

Angelina smirked and tossed her hair over her shoulders. "Just wait until you give birth and have a screaming, cranky baby and you're running on two hours of sleep when your house is filthy. Cleaning the magic way will be a godsend."

"Speaking of screaming, cranky babies, where is Freddie?" Hermione asked.

"With George at the shop. I told him that if my baby comes back with a prank wand or some other infernal contraption of his, I would hex his bits off."

"Let's not talk about my brother's bits," Ginny grimaced and shivered with revulsion. "Baby sister here, don't forget that."

"Oh yeah. Sometimes, I forget that you're George's little sister."

Ginny rolled her eyes and waddled out of the bathroom, her sister-in-laws following her.

"Aren't you going to get ready?" Hermione asked Ginny, her eyes sweeping over Ginny's outfit.

Ginny looked at Hermione and glanced at her outfit. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"

Angelina laughed herself silly at that comment. "Darling," she finally said, wiping away tears of mirth from her eyes. "Look at what you're wearing. Does that scream 'I'm going out to lunch with my two best mates?'"

Ginny looked down at her outfit. She was wearing a pair of old overalls with a white tank top inside and she had a kerchief on her head to keep her hair back. It was her cleaning clothes and she didn't see anything wrong with them.

"We're going to a pub, aren't we? Besides, I'm nearly nine months pregnant. Fashion is on the back burner right now."

Hermione and Angelina glanced at each other before Angelina stepped forward and gently took Ginny's arm. "You need to put on something better or I wont let you get chocolate mousse for dessert."

Ginny's eyes narrowed. "You can't stop me." She challenged.

"Sure I can. I'm paying today for lunch and since I have checkbook power, I can veto your food choices. Ergo, get your arse in your bedroom and change into something decent."

Ginny muttered some expletives at Angelina but stomped (actually, waddled) to her bedroom, Hermione and Angelina following.

"What do you two bints think you are doing?" Ginny asked as she entered her bedroom.

"Going to help you pick something out to wear," Hermione said.

"Since when do you care about fashion, Hermione Jean?"

Hermione smiled and watched as Angelina darted into Ginny's closet to pick something out. "Since I saw you wear overalls."

"Wear a skirt," Angelina proclaimed, tossing a long cotton skirt at Ginny. "It's thin enough to let you breathe in this weather and long enough to cover those pasty white legs of yours."

Ginny stuck out her tongue. "We all can't be as lucky as you are in the dark skin department," she said.

"I know. Hermione, come help me find a blouse. Or a dressy tank top. Do you even own that, Ginny?"

Ginny scowled. "Of course I do! And what do I need a dressy tank top for? We're going to a _pub_, remember?"

The two witches ignored Ginny and ransacked her clothes, finally picking out a green tank top, which prompted an eye roll from Ginny.

"Green? Really? How stereotypical for a redhead."

"Every other color you own would wash you out or would be too hot for today's weather. Suck it up and put the damn shirt on."

Ginny sighed and went to the bathroom to change, struggling to slide her tank top over her belly. She glared at her appearance in the mirror as she saw several inches of stomach showing from under the tank top. Now that her stomach had shifted (because, according to Healer Morris, the baby was facing head down in preparation for birth), she found it hard to cover her entire stomach.

"I'm ready," Ginny said, kicking her feet out from under the skirt as she opened the door.

"You're not wearing that kerchief, are you?" Hermione asked.

"And what if I wanted to?" Ginny asked, raising her chin stubbornly.

That wasn't the answer the two women wanted to hear and not even a minute later; Hermione immobilized Ginny as Angelina yanked on the redhead's hair, combing out the knots so she could twist it into a chignon.

"Why the _hell _are you dolling me up for a lunch at a pub?" Ginny demanded. "No, I'm not wearing makeup either. What kind of pub are we going to?"

"A nice one," Hermione said briskly as she appraised Ginny. "Fine, you don't have to wear makeup. Let's go. We're already late."

"We would have been on time if you two didn't force me to play dress up."

"We would have been on time if you didn't fight us the entire time." Angelina said. "Let's go. The car is outside as Hermione is driving."

Ginny sighed but followed the two witches outside to Hermione's sleek, black car. She groaned when she felt the hot air enveloping her body and she desperately couldn't wait to get in the car and be with air conditioning.

Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the pub and Angelina went inside first to get a table while Hermione and Ginny parked the car. Once that was done with, Hermione helped Ginny out of the car as Ginny found it increasingly hard to push herself onto her feet.

"My back is killing me," Ginny whined as she placed a hand on her back to try and alleviate the pressure. "I can't wait until this baby is born."

"Seeing you pregnant makes me not want children for a while," Hermione laughed as she locked the car.

"Being pregnant doesn't mean a cute baby bump," Ginny grouched as they walked towards the pub. "I never understood what people meant by 'pregnant birds have this glow' but now I do. We're sweaty as hell all the time."

Hermione opened the door to the pub and Ginny walked in first. "You only have a few weeks left, quit your complaining."

Ginny harrumphed but ditched her scowl for a smile when she saw the waitress. "Our friend came in not even a few minutes ago to get a table."

The waitress nodded and pointed towards a back room. "She's seated there. Enjoy your meal."

The two women walked towards the room while Ginny made sure her stomach didn't smack against patrons. She was uncoordinated as hell and she already whacked quite a few of her family members with her pregnant belly. It was embarrassing and amusing at the same time.

Hermione walked ahead of Ginny and waited until Ginny was by her side before pushing the door open.

"SURPRISE!" People shouted from inside the room, scaring the hell out of Ginny. "CONGRATULATIONS GINNY!"

Ginny slapped her hand against her racing heart as she stared around the room at the beaming faces of her close family and friends. "What the HELL is going on?" She asked to a beaming Hermione.

Angelina stepped forward, a gigantic grin on her face. "Hermione and I," she said, wrapping an arm around her sister-in-law's shoulders. "Along with the help of your mother and husband have put together a baby shower for you."

Ginny stared at everyone and she couldn't help but smile when she saw the entire Harpies team sitting at their own table, waving at Ginny. "Is that why you two made me dress up?"

Hermione laughed. "Yes! You really think we were going to allow you to wear old overalls and a kerchief to your baby shower?"

Ginny opened her mouth to respond but she was whisked away by family and friends and she spent the next fifteen minutes talking and hugging numerous people. Her brothers and father were there—along with Baby Freddie, who was eating up the attention. The five-month-old was flirting with all the women around him, cooing and smiling the entire time.

Teddy, Victoire and Molly sat at the table where their parents (and Andromeda, for Teddy) sat and Ginny found it amusing to see that Teddy was seated as far away from Victoire as possible. She thought it was sweet that Victoire had such a crush on Teddy but obviously, the seven year old believed otherwise.

Soon enough, the food was brought out and everyone enjoyed a simple but enjoyable meal. Ginny ate everything on her plate, thinking the food was extremely delicious. She eyed the cake sitting innocently on a table filled with sweets. The cake looked delicious and she was dying for a slice.

Ginny was so enraptured with the thought of eating cake that she almost missed her mother's announcement of a surprise for Ginny.

"Surprise?" Ginny asked, looking up at the Weasley matriarch curiously. "What surprise?"

The door to the room opened and everyone craned their neck to see who would enter the room.

In walked Harry with a gigantic bouquet of flowers and a large smile on his face.

Ginny stood up so fast she nearly pitched backwards. Thanks to Angelina's quick thinking she managed to avoid _that _embarrassment.

Harry. _Harry was here. _And he was safe. Her whole body was buzzing in anticipation and she could barely hear the 'awwws' coming from the women around her.

She stood, frozen, as she watched Harry draw near her. She wanted so badly to hug him but her stomach wouldn't allow that to happen.

When he was right in front of her, he gave her the bouquet of flowers and kissed her on the lips. Ginny turned red not only because Harry was being affectionate in public but because of the women oohing and aahing.

"OY," Ron shouted from a table over, his cheeks red. "Hands off my sister, Potter!"

Ginny nearly flashed her brother a very rude hand gesture but remembered that her mother was here and she would make good on her threat to hex her fingers together.

xxxxxx

The rest of the baby shower was incredibly fun. Ginny's sides hurt from laughing so much when they played all the games. One of them involved taking dressed baby dolls and running them down the hall to the other side where nappies and clothes were. The runners then had to strip the baby of the clothes and nappy and put new ones on them before running back.

It was even funnier watching the men do it—especially Ron and Charlie as they had the least amount of experience with dressing and holding babies. Even Gwenog had a hard time figuring out how to put a nappy on a baby doll and she scowled fiercely when she realized she was losing. Gwenog _hated _to lose at anything.

The amount of gifts that she was given was unbelievable. She received so many new clothes for James that she wondered if his closet would be big enough to house them. She received new baby toys, baby bath and nursery items and Arthur and Molly gave the Potters the hand-carved high chair that sat all seven Weasley children. Ginny was so touched by the gift that she cried.

She had it up to _here _with these pregnancy hormones. She hated crying.

xxxxxx

A few days later, Ginny was still sorting through gifts she received from her baby shower. The amount of gifts she had was utterly ridiculous. At the time of the unwrapping, she never realized just how much stuff she acquired.

The baby's closet was absolutely full of clothes, with Ginny folding the rest of them and placing them in drawers. Toys and other items that James wouldn't need for a while were put in the closet too.

"I should save some of these clothes," Ginny muttered to herself as she closed the drawer. "If Harry and I ever have a second baby, those clothes would be useful." She froze there, letting the words she just said sink into her brain. "What the hell am I doing, talking about a second child when I haven't even birthed my first?" She rubbed her stomach, smiling when James kicked. "Jimmy, you better go easy on me during labor. If it's awful, you probably will end up an only child."

Downstairs, she heard the door slam shut and she knew Harry was home with Teddy. With the baby's imminent arrival, the Potters decided that they wanted to spend as much time with Teddy as possible before the baby took up most of their attention. So, Teddy was coming to spend the weekend with Harry and Ginny.

Ginny _definitely _never minded when Teddy came to stay. She loved the little boy more than anything and doted on him. She always made sure Teddy and his grandmother had season tickets to the Harpies matches. When Teddy was five, Ginny had introduced Teddy to his favorite Quidditch player, Gwenog Jones. The moment the boy laid eyes on his Quidditch idol, he lost all ability to speak and he just stared at her in awe.

"Gin?" She heard Harry shout. "We're home. Teddy wants pizza tonight too."

"Yeah!" Teddy cheered.

Ginny waddled down the stairs, holding the railing to steady herself. "Does _Teddy _want pizza or does _Harry_ want it?" She teased as she hugged the little boy.

Harry grinned. "Maybe a little bit of both. But mostly Teddy."

"Can you make it, Ginny?" Teddy begged, changing his face so that he looked like a male version of his godmother. "I love your pizza!"

_It's not that hard to make, _Ginny thought amusedly but she couldn't say no to the little boy. "Sure. What do you want on it?"

"Pepperoni!" Teddy shouted, flailing his arms in excitement. "And bacon! Oink, oink!" His nose changed into a pig snout.

_What a typical man, _Ginny thought to herself as she watched Harry charm Teddy's small bag upstairs into his room. She made her way into the kitchen and got to work on the pizza dough, thawing it out with her wand.

When the pizza was in the oven, Ginny made her way upstairs as she forgot to put sheets on Teddy's bed. Not that she would actually do it anyway. It was times like this that she was happy to be a witch as she got just charm the sheets to go on the bed.

When she finally got upstairs, she grabbed the sheets from the linen closet and walked into Teddy's room. Taking her wand out, she muttered a spell under her breath and watched as the sheets fitted themselves over the mattress. Once the bed was properly made, Ginny nodded in approval and left the room.

It was then when she noticed that the door to the nursery was wide open, which was odd as Ginny specifically remembered closing it earlier.

Walking into the room, Ginny found Teddy in there, peering into the cot and looking at the drawers and closet.

"Teddy?" Ginny asked, watching as the little boy jumped. He whirled around to see Ginny and his hair turned red along with his face. "What are you doing in here?"

"Just looking," Teddy said, tucking his chin onto his chest and stuffing his small hands into his pockets. He wouldn't look into her eyes so Ginny knew he was either embarrassed or lying.

"Teddy," Ginny said as she moved towards the boy. "Tell the truth. Why are you in here?" She took the boy's hand and tipped his chin up with her other hand so he could look into her eyes.

Teddy kicked his foot out and mumbled something under his breath.

"What was that?" Ginny asked, craning her neck to hear better.

"I just wanna see the baby's room," Teddy said before he wiped his cheek roughly with his hand. "When the baby's born, are you and Harry gonna forget about me?" Teddy asked quietly.

Ginny frowned and reached out to stroke Teddy's hair. "Never, buddy. You know Harry and I love you more than anything."

Teddy sniffled. "But when the baby comes, you guys are gonna spend all your time with the baby and leave me."

Ginny's heart went out to the boy. Teddy lived in fear that everyone that he loved would eventually abandon him. For the longest time, he thought his parents had left him because they didn't love him anymore. It took a lot of explaining (and growing up) before Teddy understood that his parents loved him so much that they were willing to die so Teddy could grow up in a safe, happy world.

She pulled the boy into her arms (to the best of her ability) and played with his hair. "No, Teddy," she said gently. "We're never going to leave you. We love you too much and I know the baby will adore you. Besides, who is going to play with the baby when he arrives and teach him stuff that only big brothers can do?"

Teddy looked up, his eyes full of unshed tears. "Big brother?" He asked curiously.

"Yes. You'll be like a big brother to the baby, would you like that?"

Teddy thoughtfully mulled it over before nodding. "I've always wanted a little brother. I can't wait to meet him." His face darkened though after that comment. "Grandma told me that I wouldn't be able to spend the night as often anymore when the new baby comes."

Ginny decided to choose her words carefully so she wouldn't upset the boy further. "Well for the first few weeks it'll be really hard for you to spend the night. Do you want to spend the night when the baby is crying and Harry and I are tired?"

Teddy shook his head.

"So while you might not be able to spend the night _at first_, once the baby has a routine you can certainly spend the night as often as you like."

Teddy nodded, relieved that he would still be allowed to spend the night as much as he would like.

"Ginny?"

"Yes?"

"Wha—what if the baby doesn't like me?" Pure panic was etched across Teddy's small face. "What if he hates me?"

Ginny leaned down to press a kiss to Teddy's forehead. "He won't hate you, Teddy. Want me to show you how I know?"

Teddy nodded vigorously.

Ginny took Teddy's hand and placed it on her stomach. "If he kicks your hand, that means he likes you already. Talk to the baby for a few moments and see if he kicks you."

Teddy stepped a bit closer, his eyes wide as he stared at the expanse of Ginny's stomach. "He's gonna be able to hear me through your shirt and skin and tummy?" He asked in awe.

"Yes."

"How?" Teddy asked curiously.

Ginny shrugged. "I really have no idea, Teddy. But talk to the baby. See if he responds."

Teddy obeyed and he talked aloud to the baby, telling him about himself and that he was the baby's big brother. "We're gonna go to Harpies games and get Chocolate Frogs and Pumpkin Pasties," he proclaimed. "And Grandma won't be able to stop us either and we'll eat as much as we—oh!" Teddy drew back his hand and stared at his palm. "The baby! He kicked me!"

Ginny laughed in delight, pleased to see how stunned Teddy was. "I told you he likes you."

The look of heartfelt delight that spread across Teddy's face was so sweet; Ginny wished she had a camera with her.

"I can't wait to meet him," Teddy said as he hugged Ginny around her middle.

"You and I both, Ted," Ginny said as she ruffled Teddy's hair. "You and I both."

xxxxxx

**Eight months down, one to go! We're in the clearing people! **

**Obviously, in this chapter, Ginny was thrown a surprise baby shower. Sometimes, I forget that not all my readers are from the US so I was really shocked to learn that baby showers really aren't that common outside of the United States. From my research, I found out that baby showers are becoming a bit more common in the UK. To my British readers, can you verify/deny this for me?**

**Oh and if there are numerous grammar/spelling errors, I apologize. I am very tired right now but I wanted to post this chapter up. So, bear with me! **

**Review, my fabulous readers! Your reviews are seriously the highlight of my day!**


	10. Month Nine

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_August 6, 2005_

Ginny's due date had come and gone and she was still pregnant. And it didn't look like Baby James planned on making an arrival anytime soon.

Ginny was done. Completely done with pregnancy. She was sore, utterly exhausted and she felt like a whale. Healer Morris had informed her that the baby was fully developed and it was just a matter of waiting until he was ready to come out.

In other words, Baby James was straight up freeloading.

She was now getting letters and people popping in daily to her house, wondering if she was in labor yet. The press was going wild in anticipation of the newest Potter and they were now camped out in front of her house. Well, they _had _been camped out until Molly Weasley came out in all her fury. Then they scattered. However, there was a brave soul or two that would come by in hopes to see Ginny and Harry running out of the house in a panic.

"You know, Jimmy," Ginny said as she sat up from the couch, groaning at how sore her back was. "You could just do us all a favor and _get out. _We all would like to meet you. I get it—it's probably very comfortable in there but I'm sure you're squished. Come out into the world. We have a lot of room."

"Talking to the baby again, Ginny?" Harry teased as he entered the room and helped his wife up.

"Yes," Ginny sighed. "I'm trying to persuade him that the outside world is better than the inside."

Harry laughed and loped an arm around her shoulders. "Somehow, I don't think that's going to work."

xxxxxx

_August 7, 2005_

It was Day Two of Baby Watch 2005 and there was still no baby.

She hated having to inform Harry whenever she gasped that no, she was not in labor. The baby decided to kick her in the damn ribs so that's why she gasped.

She hated seeing how disappointed he looked.

Harry had not taken time off work yet as he was waiting until Ginny was in actual labor before he would do that. He wanted as much time as possible with the baby and Ginny before he had to go back to work.

Her back was _killing her_, to be frankly honest, and it had been for a day or two. Her Braxton Hicks contractions were still a pain in the arse and now that the baby was head down, she had to pee more often. But, on the bright side, she could actually take deep breaths now!

Her mother was fussing over her daily, bringing over frozen food that could be easily heated up when the baby arrived. Even her father had shown up to have a chat with Harry about labor and delivery. When Arthur left, Harry had walked into the kitchen, his face white as he tried to digest what his father-in-law had told him.

"How are you doing, Ginny?" Hermione asked the redhead, surveying her over her teacup.

"Do you really want to know the answer to that?" Ginny asked.

"Not really," Hermione laughed.

"You know, I used to wish for the baby to be born on my birthday," Ginny said as she ate a cookie. "But I don't think I can wait a whole three days. I really just want him to come out now."

"I know," Hermione said sympathetically. "But it shouldn't be long now. What did the Healer say at your last appointment?"

"Healer Morris said that if I'm still pregnant by next Wednesday, she's going to induce me."

Hermione nodded. "So you really only have a week left before the Healers forcibly remove the baby."

"That's a week too long," Ginny protested. "You just wait until you're in the pudding club. A week seems like forever." She suddenly had the overwhelming urge to pee so she excused herself and left the kitchen to find Hermione and Ron's bathroom.

Once in the bathroom, she happily relieved herself on the loo. When she went to wipe herself, she saw a pinkish streak on her toilet paper. Wrinkling her nose, Ginny tossed it into the toilet and stood up. Turning towards the loo, she went to flush when she saw a dark red stringy mass in the toilet. "What the hell?" Ginny wondered to herself as she flushed. "That's disgusting. Stupid pregnancy and its weird effects."

xxxxxx

_August 8, 2005 12.30 a.m. _

She couldn't sleep. Her back was hurting too much.

Turning on the bedside lamp, Ginny struggled to sit up in bed, whimpering softly at the pain. She just needed a warm compress to put on her back.

"Ginny?" Harry turned over in bed, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"My back just hurts. It's nothing—go back to sleep."

But Harry wasn't going to go back to sleep knowing that his wife's back was hurting. He was sitting up in a second and he put on his glasses so he could see well. "Where does it hurt?"

"Right here," Ginny said as she gestured to her lower back, rubbing it gingerly.

"It's probably sore," Harry said. "I'll get you a compress." He grabbed his wand from his bedside table and Summoned a compress from the bathroom, warming it up with his wand. Placing it on her bare back, Harry turned off both of the lights. "Try and get some sleep, Ginny. Wake me up though if your back still hurts, alright?"

"Yeah," Ginny said, settling down in bed again as she hugged her pillow. Her back ached tremendously but she felt that the hot compress was helping.

_2.17 a.m. _

Her stomach was starting to hurt—almost as if the back pain was travelling from the back to the front.

Ginny opened her eyes and saw that it was still dark outside. Looking at the clock, she saw that it was still very, very late.

The hot compress was lukewarm now so Ginny placed it on her nightstand and rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling.

It was weird—these stomach cramps. They almost felt like menstrual cramps and that was a pain that Ginny hadn't felt in many, many months.

Placing her hands on her stomach, Ginny was surprised to feel that her stomach was rock hard. Turning on the lamp again, Ginny pressed on her stomach until she felt it grow soft again. "Interesting," she muttered to herself.

Turning on her side again, Ginny closed her eyes and tried to sleep again. She was close to succumbing to sleep when her stomach started to cramp again and her eyes opened.

_Maybe I ate something that didn't agree with me_, Ginny thought to herself. The pain wasn't so bad so she closed her eyes again and fell asleep.

_3.45 a.m._

She had to pee. Right this moment. She knew that if she didn't get up at this exact second she would pee on herself.

Groaning softly at her abdominal pain (which was becoming stronger), Ginny got out of bed and started to walk to the bathroom.

"Ginny? Are you okay?" Harry asked as he sat up in bed, his glasses askew.

"Yeah, I just have to pee," Ginny said as she took another step forward. However, before she could continue moving towards the bathroom, she suddenly felt an enormous pressure and then heard a small 'pop'—almost as if someone had cracked a knuckle. The next thing she knew was that there was a huge rush and a pool of liquid was running down her legs and onto the floor.

_Did I just wet myself? _Ginny thought, panic setting in as she felt more liquid gush down her legs. "I think I just peed myself."

"What?" Harry straightened his glasses and turned on the lights. With the light on, Ginny looked down to see her pajama shorts soaking wet and some liquid on the floor.

"I think I just peed myself," Ginny said, mortification setting in, feeling more liquid trickle down her legs. "But it won't stop."

Harry got out of bed and moved quickly towards his wife. He stared at the liquid on the hardwood floors and looked up at Ginny, his face slowly losing color.

"Harry," Ginny said, eerily calm. "I do think I am in labor."

xxxxxx

_7.14 a.m. _

So far, the pain was nothing Ginny couldn't handle. She was a Quidditch player, dammit. She had a high pain tolerance because of her job and because she survived the Second War. Some stomach cramps were nothing compared to the Cruciatus Curse.

She was at the hospital too, having arrived not even half an hour ago. Harry had wanted to take her the minute her water broke but Ginny decided to wait it out. She had Harry fetch her mother while her father rounded the entire Weasley gang up.

Her mother had timed her contractions for her while Harry was gone and it wasn't until her contractions were three to five minutes apart for an hour that her mother informed Harry and Ginny that they needed to get to the hospital.

Sure, the contractions were getting stronger but Ginny could still talk through them with nobody really knowing that she was in pain unless she grimaced slightly.

Healer Morris had arrived and checked on Ginny, saying that she was about three centimeters dilated. Ginny had been thrilled to hear that she was already that far along until she realized she had another seven to go and it might take a while.

So, she walked the length of her hospital room, talking to Harry and her mother.

"Can we bring in Angelina and Hermione? Oh, and why not Fleur too. She's been through this before. She might have something useful to say." Ginny said, wanting more company.

Molly left the room to get the three women, leaving Harry and Ginny behind.

"You alright?" Ginny asked Harry, counting her steps as she walked the length of the room again. She refused to lie down until it was absolutely necessary. Besides, she heard that walking around and standing upright would help speed up delivery.

"I'm alright," Harry said, his voice wavering slightly. "I'm not looking forward to seeing you in pain though."

"I'm already at three centimeters with barely any pain," Ginny protested, feeling very smug about this also. "Watch, they won't get that bad."

_11.55 a.m._

_I need to keep my ruddy mouth SHUT, _Ginny thought to herself miserably as she fought a whimper as another contraction wracked through her.

She was lying on her bed, curled in a fetal position and batting anyone away who tried to touch her. The pain started to increase at about eight thirty when Healer Morris came in to check on her. Ginny was disheartened to hear that she was still three centimeters dilated. She thought she would have progressed more. She waved away the Healer's offer of pain medication. She didn't need it yet. She was still not in too much pain.

But then the contractions started picking up in intensity and it got to a point where Ginny couldn't talk whenever one started. The pain was worse than she could ever imagine. She would rather get hit with the Cruciatus Curse than go through labor.

"Ginny, do you want us to ring for some pain medication?" Angelina asked Ginny gently, watching her sister-in-law with sympathetic eyes.

Ginny shook her head quickly, her whole body relaxing when the contraction passed. "No, I don't need it."

Hermione made a frustrated noise, her bushy hair even wilder from all the times she ran her fingers through it. "We won't look at you differently if you take the potion."

"Zat is true," Fleur chimed in, her stomach now sporting the telltale signs of a small bump. "With Victoire, I did not want any potions. 'Owever, zee pain wuzz so bad I changed my mind."

"No," Ginny said, curling up into a tighter ball as another contraction hit her. She bit her lip to keep from crying out as a wave of pain overcame her. Try as she might, she couldn't fight the whimper that escaped her lips.

Harry was by her side in a flash, his face pale. Ginny knew that Harry _hated _to see her in pain and she knew it was killing him inside that he couldn't stop it.

"Here, Harry," Angelina stood up and pressed a small, yellow furry ball into his hand. "I'm sure you know what this is."

"A tennis ball."

"Yeah, that. If you want to try and help Ginny, roll the tennis ball on her lower back. Make sure you're pressing the ball into her back in small counter-clockwise circles to help alleviate the pressure. George did that with me and it really did help. Ginny," Angelina turned to the redhead and showed her the ball. "Do you want Harry to try that?"

Ginny nodded, wanting some relief. She didn't know why she was being so stubborn about the pain medication. She just didn't want to take it yet.

_2.03 p.m. _

She was now five centimeters dilated. "You're halfway there," Healer Morris said cheerfully after she had examined the redhead. Ginny wanted to hex that stupid smile off the Healer's face.

She had been in labor for almost twelve hours. Or maybe it was even earlier. She didn't even know anymore.

The pain was awful, completely awful. She had broken down and cried already, sobbing that she wanted her mummy. Molly had immediately comforted her daughter, whispering soothing things into her ear as she smoothed her hair.

Ginny felt like a little girl again as her mother cradled her and for a second she was transported to innocent, carefree times when she would cry to her Mum whenever she scraped her knee. A kiss and a band-aid always made things better.

However, the only thing that would make her better was childbirth. And after the past twelve hours, Ginny was scared shitless of what was to come.

Fleur had left over an hour ago, as she needed to feed Victoire. The entire family had come to St. Mungo's but upon hearing that Ginny's labor would be long, left until they were summoned again when the birth was near.

Angelina and Hermione stayed, though. They refused to leave Ginny's side until Ginny gave birth.

Harry was a right, old mess. His hair was even messier than normal and his clothes were rumpled. His face was pale and drawn and his eyes kept darting towards Ginny every few seconds, wincing whenever he saw her in pain.

Ginny was still refusing any pain medication, much to everyone's astonishment. They hadn't expected Ginny to last this long without a pain potion but they grudgingly accepted the redhead's reasoning that she felt she didn't need it yet.

Ginny knew she would eventually need it. The question was—when would she finally consent to the potion.

_4.20 p.m. _

Anger was starting to set in. She was only six centimeters. She nearly screamed in frustration when she was checked and had received the news.

"This is your first baby, Ginny," Molly said gently after Healer Morris left. "Labor won't progress quickly. It takes time. You need to be patient."

"Bollocks on patience!" Ginny snapped. "I'm so tired of waiting. I want this damn baby—" she had to stop talking as another contraction went through her. She gritted her teeth and breathed through her nose and out through her mouth, trying to think of anything else except the excruciating pain. As she progressed through her labor, Ginny noticed that she could tell exactly when a contraction was about to start and when it would end. The contraction built slowly until it peaked. When it peaked, Ginny was in the worst pain imaginable and her entire body was tense and on fire. However, the contraction would slowly start to lose its fire and slowly die away.

Ginny looked forward to when the contractions would end. It meant she had time to breathe again and collect her bearings for the next contraction.

"Ginny? Do you want me to massage your back with the tennis ball again?" Harry was standing by her bedside, holding the tennis ball up.

White-hot anger coursed through Ginny as she glared at the person who got her into this mess. "This is all your fault," she hissed.

Harry took a step back, his eyebrows knit in confusion. Hermione clapped a hand to her mouth while Angelina let loose a nervous giggle.

"What?"

"You heard me. This is all _your _ruddy fault that I'm in so much bloody pain." Ginny just wanted to punch him in his face. She knew it would make her feel better.

"How is it my fault?" Harry asked dubiously. "If I recall, you weren't saying no that night."

Hermione's face turned scarlet and Angelina hid her face so Ginny couldn't see her laughter. Molly, on the other hand, watched the interaction calmly, almost as if she had seen this before.

Ginny's eyes flashed and her fingers itched for her wand. "When I get my wand back," she said slowly. "I'm going to hex your bits off so you can't touch me ever again. You're officially celibate after today."

Harry opened his mouth to retort but Molly was up and tugging Harry back to his seat, away from Ginny's wrath.

"Don't listen to her, dear," she said to her son-in-law. "Heaven knows I said almost the exact same thing to Arthur when I was in labor. She doesn't mean it."

"Yes, I do," Ginny said, overhearing every bit of the conversation. She folded her arms and glared at Harry. "By the way, your bed is the couch now."

_6.45 p.m. _

Nine. She was _nine centimeters dilated._

Just one more to go. She could do it.

She had finally taken the pain potion when she was seven centimeters. The pain and contractions had moved up a thousand notches and the contractions were coming so fast that she couldn't catch her breath.

The pain had been so bad that she was nauseous and spent time huddled by the loo dry heaving.

To the relief of everyone in the room, she had requested the pain medication and downed it immediately. Not even ten minutes later, she had morphed into a nicer version of herself. She could feel pressure but no pain and she was very happy about that.

The whole family had returned to the waiting room, now that Ginny was almost ready to push. Angelina and Hermione were still in the room, offering support and encouragement.

"I would use the loo if I were you," Angelina said. "It didn't happen to me but my mum said that some pregnant ladies poop when they are pushing the baby out."

Ginny stared at Angelina in horror, with Harry's face screwed up in disgust. Hermione looked faintly revolted while Molly looked nonplussed.

"It isn't like the Healers haven't seen it before," Molly pointed out. "And they won't _tell _you that you did pooped on the table."

"That's disgusting," Ginny said, struggling to get out of bed so she could use the loo. "No, I'm going to use the bathroom. I would really _not _like to poop while giving birth, thank you very much."

_7.22 p.m._

"Ten centimeters!" Healer Morris proclaimed. "You're ready to push, Ginny."

This was the moment she had been waiting nearly fifteen hours for. Nurses started to come into the room too and Ginny felt a twinge of fear. What if things went wrong during delivery? What if the baby got stuck? What if the baby died? What if she was doing it wrong?

Hermione, Angelina and her mother left soon after, hugging and kissing the Potters for good luck.

"You can do it, my Ginbug," Molly said, her eyes filling with tears. She pressed one final kiss to Ginny's head before she left the room with her daughter-in-laws.

"You ready?" Ginny asked Harry softly as he sidled up next to her, taking her hand.

Harry swallowed nervously but nodded. "Yes. I can't wait to meet him."

"Me neither," Ginny said, squeezing Harry's hand as tight as she could.

"Alright, Ginny," Healer Morris said as she situated herself between Ginny's legs. "You ready? Harry, can you grab one of her legs and keep it open? Perfect, just like that."

"Hi, Ginny," a pretty, blonde nurse smiled at the redhead and held her leg. "When you feel a contraction, don't fight it. You're going to bear down and push for ten seconds. Almost as if you're trying to use the toilet. Got it?"

Ginny nodded, her heart in her throat. She was scared out of her mind but she was not going to show it. She was going to be brave and deliver her baby.

Ginny could feel the pressure of a contraction starting and she gritted her teeth and bore down, pushing as if she had to use the restroom. Harry was squeezing her hand and encouraging her, counting with the nurse as she pushed for ten seconds.

"Ten!" The nurse said as Ginny flopped her head back onto the pillow, feeling exhausted. "Take a quick breath and push again."

Ginny took in a gulp of air and lifted her head up so that her chin was pressed against her chest. She pushed with all her might, hoping that her pushes were effective.

Faintly, she could hear Harry and the nurse encouraging and praising her and those words kept her going. The world seemed to slow down as Ginny pushed and cried out, her entire body shaking. Her hair was matted to her forehead and neck but she kept going, listening only to what her husband, the nurse and the doctor were saying.

"You're doing great, Ginny!" Healer Morris said after what seemed like an eternity. "I can almost see the baby's head!"

The Healer's statement thrilled Ginny and that redoubled her motivation to push as effectively as she could. She was dying to see her baby.

So she pushed and pushed and pushed, grunting and shaking the entire time. She was so tired and she wanted to rest. Her heart was racing and she was having a hard time getting deep breaths in.

"One more big push," the nurse said. "C'mon Ginny. Push, push, push. You got it."

Ginny grunted and pushed again, her entire face growing red with the amount of force she was putting into it.

Suddenly, Harry's soothing tones turned into one of excitement. "He has hair, Ginny! I saw his hair!"

"One big push," Healer Morris said. "And his head will come out. Just one big push, you got it."

"Take a quick breath," the nurse said. "Now push!"

Ginny did just that. She sucked in a deep breath and pushed with all her might, crying out as she did so. She heard Harry become more animated as the baby's head slowly slid out and she knew she was almost done.

"One more big push!" Healer Morris said. "You got it, Ginny! Don't you want to meet your baby?"

Of course she wanted to meet her baby, what kind of stupid question was that?

But she pushed anyway, wanting to make this push her best and last one. The noise level in the room increased as the rest of the baby's body slid out and into Healer Morris' hands.

And then she heard it. The most beautiful sound in the world.

The sound of her baby crying for the first time.

The very sound of her child—_her child_—crying made Ginny burst into tears. Healer Morris held the slimy, blood covered, crying baby in the air so that Harry and Ginny could get their first look at him. "It's a boy!" She cried out as she laid the baby across Ginny's chest and stomach. The nurses sprung into action as they quickly toweled the baby off, removing some of the blood.

Ginny had never seen anyone more beautiful and perfect than her own child.

"Hi James," Harry said, wiping away his tears with the back of his hand. "We're so happy to meet you."

"He's beautiful," Ginny cried as she stared at the infant, unable to stop drinking in the sight of her squirming, squalling baby. "He's so perfect."

_10.30 p.m._

Normally, newly born babies would spend their first night in the hospital nursery but the Potters had swiftly knocked that idea down. They wanted their son near them.

Ginny still couldn't believe that they had a baby. She couldn't believe she was a _mother. _

James Sirius Potter had been born at 8.42 p.m. on August 8 and weighed a healthy eight pounds two ounces and measured in at twenty-one inches.

Ginny couldn't believe that she had pushed for over an hour. It had felt a lot shorter than that. But, looking back, the details were quite hazy.

The whole family had met James within an hour of his birth. The youngest Potter had been passed around the Weasley clan (with minor arguments due to Molly's reluctance to pass the baby on) and everyone said that he was perfect and beautiful.

But you didn't need to tell Ginny that. She already knew that her baby was perfect and beautiful.

Teddy had been incredibly shy when it was his turn to hold the baby and Andromeda sat him on a chair and watched carefully as her grandson held James.

"He's really small," Teddy said seriously. "How can we play Quidditch?"

Harry laughed and rumpled Teddy's blue hair, smiling at the boy. "He'll grow up, Teddy. Just give him some time."

Teddy nodded and looked at James again. "Watch out for Victoire," he whispered to the baby. "She likes to kiss boys."

Eventually, everyone started to leave around nine thirty except for Ron and Hermione as the Potters asked them to stay behind so they could talk.

"How are you feeling, Ginny?" Ron asked, still holding Baby James.

"Better now that I'm not in labor." Ginny said, taking a drink from her cup of water. She hadn't been allowed to drink or eat anything during labor so she was definitely making up for lost time.

"Why did you ask us to stay?" Hermione asked from her spot next to Ginny's bed. She had cried when she saw James for the first time and then she broke down into fresh tears again when she saw Ron hold James.

Ginny looked at her husband, who nodded. "We have something to ask you two," Ginny said.

Even Ron looked up at that statement, his curiosity piqued.

"Ginny and I were wondering," Harry started. "If you two would like to be James' godparents."

There was a stunned silence before Hermione burst into tears again and Ron's face turned red.

Ginny and Harry both looked bewildered at this odd display of emotion and for a moment, Ginny wondered if they didn't _want _to be the baby's godparents.

But then, Hermione started nodding through her tears and Ron cleared his throat, his face still rosy. "We would be honored to be his godparents," Ron said as he looked down at his godson.

"There's a catch though," Ginny said, a small smirk playing at her lips.

Even Harry looked confused.

"As James' godfather, you're not allowed to indoctrinate him into the Cannons craziness."

Ron snorted and held the baby protectively to his chest. "Fat chance I'll ever agree to that."

Ron and Hermione had left soon after that as they both had work in the morning, leaving the new family of three to themselves.

Harry had fallen asleep not too long ago and was snoring softly on the couch, a light blanket thrown over him. James lay in his hospital bassinet near Ginny's bed, sleeping soundly.

Ginny reached over towards the bassinet, trailing her index finger over her baby's button nose. "Welcome to the craziness, Jimmy," Ginny whispered, her heart swelling with love at the sight of her child. "I promise we won't corrupt you too much. You are part Weasley, after all."

xxxxxx

**Aren't you readers lucky? I was SO happy with all your amazing reviews that I decided to give you guys another chapter. I couldn't help myself—this story is so much fun.**

**I hope I did the whole labor and delivery sequence justice and if not, whoops. Well, I tried. I researched as much as I could (and got many pictures that I also didn't want to see, ugh). **

**There's one more chapter after this and then this story is done. But do not fret, my dear readers, I actually have another story in mind that should be up in a week or two.**

**And one final note: no, I will not be writing any pregnancy stories dealing with Albus or Lily. **

**Review, you awesome people!**


	11. The New Beginning

**The Pregnancy Chronicles **

**Disclaimer: No, no and more no. I own nothing except maybe minor characters. That is all. **

_December 2005_

When Ginny first became pregnant, everyone kept telling her that her life would change when she would give birth.

At the time, the redhead hadn't believed them.

Now she did.

Life had changed so much since August 8 and Ginny wouldn't change it for a thing. She couldn't remember _why _she wanted to put off having children. She loved being a mother.

She loved James more than anything and she now understood why Lily Potter had sacrificed herself that fateful Halloween night. Looking into her baby's sweet face, Ginny knew that she would die for her son so that he could live a good life.

Ginny also now knew why her mother worried over her children so much when they were growing up. Ginny constantly fretted about James. When she had gone back to training in October she had sobbed when she brought her son to her mother's house. She kept thinking about him all practice, wondering if he was sleeping properly or if he missed her.

Harry was such a wonderful father, too. He doted upon Baby James and if the baby wasn't sleeping, he was in Harry's arms. He was attentive to the baby's every need and Harry and Ginny sometimes fought over who got to get James in the middle of the night.

Harry usually got him, to be honest. Since Ginny was breastfeeding, she decided to allow Harry to get James on most nights so they each got an equal amount of time with the baby.

The Potters _were _sleep-deprived too. Ginny found herself taking the same draughts Angelina took to wake her up. James liked to wake up every two to three hours so the Potters weren't getting a full night's sleep like they used to.

But it was worth it, frankly. Ginny would rather be sleep deprived and know that she was so because she had a baby.

Everything her baby did was perfect. Ginny praised James extensively whenever she changed his nappy, even though the fumes made her want to pass out. Even when James peed on her the first time she thought that his aim was perfect.

Harry _hadn't _been as enthralled about James peeing on him and he hadn't been happy when Ginny laughed at him, too.

Things were definitely changing in the Potter/Weasley homes. Ginny and Hermione's weekly lunches had been indefinitely postponed due to Ginny's new baby and because Hermione's morning sickness made her incapable of going out to eat.

Ron and Hermione had announced they were expecting in September and Ginny had been absolutely thrilled. James and the new baby would only be ten months apart in age! They would most certainly be best friends.

Ginny wasn't so sure about the burgeoning friendship between Baby James and Baby Freddie, though. When she had brought James over to Angelina and George's house for the first time, she and Angelina had set the babies on a blanket and watched them play.

The then seven-month-old Freddie had stared at James curiously and scooted over to him, examining him carefully. Angelina and Ginny had watched the cousins and when Freddie reached over to touch James' tuft of reddish brown hair, they had exclaimed that it was obvious that the two would be best of friends.

Until the gentle touches turned into hair yanking. James had squealed in pain before starting to wail, his tiny face turning red. Freddie, alarmed that the baby was wailing, also started to cry and turned to Angelina, arms up for comfort.

"That went well," Ginny said to Angelina as she tried to comfort her son.

"I'll say," Angelina murmured.

In the end, the two witches decided to not allow their children to be in close range of each other until they were old enough to not cause harm.

xxxxxx

She had returned home from another exhausting training session and she felt like her legs were going to give up on her.

_I should have been exercising more when I was pregnant, _Ginny thought miserably to herself as she kicked off her shoes and stared longingly at the couch. She wanted so badly to lie down on the couch and sleep but she knew she had to see James. Her baby always came first.

It took all of Ginny's strength to climb up the stairs, her sore muscles crying out in pain. She hated Gwenog sometimes for pushing her this hard so soon after having a baby but she also knew that it was best if she got into shape as quick as possible.

"Harry?" Ginny called as she reached the landing and walked towards the nursery. She heard a high-pitched squeal and a deeper laugh resonate through the room. Curious, Ginny opened the door to see James lying on his baby blanket on the floor, giggling like crazy when Harry blew raspberries onto James' bare tummy.

"You're so funny," Harry laughed, watching as James kicked his feet in excitement, his brown eyes wide with delight. "You know, your mummy is very ticklish on her stomach too. But don't try to tickle her when she's mad at you. She'll just hex you."

James stared at his father; his tiny body still as he listened to Harry speak.

Harry lifted James up and kissed him on his forehead, cradling his son tenderly in his arms. "I love you, James," he murmured as he rocked the baby in his arms. "I hope you like it when I tell you that because I always want you to know that you're very, very loved."

Ginny felt tears prick her eyes and she wiped them away roughly. She knew that Harry wanted James to have the childhood he never had. He wanted James to always know that his parents adored him.

The baby's face screwed up and he looked like he was about to cry, a fact that Harry quickly figured out. The older man's eyebrows knitted together but then realization dawned when James let out a grunt and his facial features smoothed out.

"Oh sweet Merlin," Harry's own face screwed up and he turned his head away. "James, did you just poop? Why can't you save these nappy changes for your mum?"

Ginny snickered softly but it was loud enough that Harry could hear. Turning his head around, he spied his wife and his eyes widened in relief. "Ginny! How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough to know that you want James to save his nappy blowouts for me," she said, smirking when she saw her husband's face turn slightly pink.

James squealed when he saw his mother and he kicked his legs excitedly. "Hi Jimmy," Ginny cooed to her son. She loved it when James acted that way when he saw her.

"No, I'm not picking you up just yet. I'm going to let Daddy take care of your nappy first," she laughed at Harry's abashed reaction. "C'mon, Potter. Change him before he gets a rash."

xxxxxx

Christmas was around the corner and Ginny marveled over the fact that one year ago, she was in her first trimester of pregnancy.

Funny how things change in a year.

As this was James's first Christmas, Ginny wanted everything to be perfect. She bought a 'Baby's first Christmas' ornament and hung it up on the tree and even purchased a miniature Santa suit for James. When she had taken Muggle Studies, she had been fascinated by the story of St. Nick and his ability to cover the world in twenty-four hours to give all good children gifts. She had been even _more _impressed to learn that children believed this tale too.

She couldn't believe they were already getting to her baby's first Christmas. James was growing and changing before her eyes and the redhead wished she could pause time so her son could stay a baby forever.

Of course, with it being Christmas Ginny could now participate fully in the food-eating contest. This time last year she was plagued with morning sickness and wasn't at her peak performance. _This _year, though, she planned on dominating.

Close to Christmas, however, Ginny found herself sorting clothes through her closet, throwing all her maternity clothes in a pile so she could give them to Hermione. Angelina and Ginny planned on _not _becoming pregnant any time soon so they figured they should share with their sister.

"Ew," Ginny said aloud as she eyed a white, ruffled shirt. "Did I ever wear this? I hope not, it's hideous." She tossed it over her shoulder and continued sorting. Although Angelina had lent her a majority of her clothes, Ginny supplemented her wardrobe with additional pieces. As a consequence, Ginny had an abundance of maternity clothes that she certainly did not need anymore.

"Hmm," Ginny mused as she held up a green cotton dress. "I think I'll keep this one. Hermione wouldn't look good in green anyway."

So she continued to sort for a bit until she suddenly sat up, back ramrod straight. Faintly, she could hear the sound of a baby crying.

Checking her watch, Ginny grumbled when she saw James had only been asleep for forty-five minutes. Getting up, she quickly made her way towards the nursery, the baby's cries getting louder as she approached.

"Calm down, baby," Ginny said as she entered the room, her eyes zeroing in on the cot. "Mummy's here."

Looking down at her son, Ginny saw that he had kicked off his swaddling blankets and his dummy was at the corner of the cot, obviously tossed away by the four-month-old.

"Oh Jimmy," Ginny sighed as she took in her baby's red face, frowning at his cries. "You are going to be _such _a grouch tonight." Picking the baby up, Ginny snatched up his dummy and placed it in his mouth. Instantly, James's screams stopped and he closed his eyes, sucking vigorously on the pacifier.

"Brat," Ginny teased as she sat down in the rocking chair, wanting to rock her son back to sleep.

James, however, had no intentions of going back to sleep. His brown eyes flew open and locked with his mother's. Mother and son stared at each other until James started to smile, reaching his tiny hands up to grasp Ginny's chin.

"You want to play?" Ginny asked in disbelief as she felt her son's sharp nails scratch against her skin. "Unlikely, Jimmy! You need to go back to sleep." She started to rock him and slowly hum the lullaby that usually lulled James to sleep. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back, willing James to succumb to sleep again. She had so much to do and it was easiest to get done when James was knocked out.

But James didn't want to sleep and he didn't like that his mother wasn't smiling and paying attention to him. Spitting out his pacifier, James whimpered, his small face crumpling as his lower lip jutted out.

Hearing that whimper, Ginny looked down at her son. James, upon seeing that his mother was paying attention to him, smiled and cooed at her.

Ginny scoffed and stroked James's cheek. "Oh c'mon. Are you really boycotting a nap? Really? Fine, we'll just let daddy deal with you tonight."

Getting up, Ginny took out her wand and summoned a baby blanket and some toys. She needed to finish sorting the clothes but she also needed to entertain her son too.

Carrying James into her closet, she set the blanket down and placed James on his tummy; setting the toys close to him so he could play. James squealed when he saw his favorite toy dragon and he grasped it. Rolling onto his back, he laughed to himself as he stuck the toy in his mouth.

Amused at her child's ability to entertain himself, Ginny returned to her sorting.

James soon tired of his toy and watched his mother instead. Ginny had no idea he was doing this until she tossed a shirt over her shoulder and heard an explosion of tiny, baby giggles.

Ginny turned her head to see James laughing hysterically, his round belly heaving. Raising an eyebrow, Ginny fought a smile as she listened to her baby laugh. "What is so funny?" She asked, reaching over to smooth his small tuft of hair. "Is it because I tossed the clothes over my shoulder?"

James, finally calming down, looked at his mother and kicked his feet.

Watching him, Ginny found a shirt she didn't like and tossed it over her shoulder. Immediately, James started to giggle.

Ginny couldn't help herself and started throwing as many clothes as she could over her shoulder, laughing along with James.

"Oh Jimmy," Ginny laughed as she picked her son up and kissed his chubby cheeks. "You have _such_ a bizarre sense of humor."

xxxxxx

"Ginny! You need to hurry up, or we are going to be late!"

The redhead made a face as she finished dressing James in his Santa suit. "Daddy just doesn't understand," she said to her son. "You're just so cute that I have to keep you dressed up."

"GINNY!"

"Keep your hair on!" Ginny yelled back, scowling at the door. Turning back to James, Ginny grinned when she saw her baby dressed in a red one-piece with faux fur lining at the neck and sleeves. The outfit had fake buttons down the middle and ended where the black and gold belt started. The baby's tiny feet were enclosed in red booties and Ginny placed a hat over James's tuft of hair.

"There!" She beamed, gazing at her adorable baby. James reached up to touch the hat and tried to yank it off, a scowl on his face.

"Keep it on, James!" Ginny grabbed his hands and held them in hers. "You look so cute!"

"Ginny! Do you really want your Mum to kill us on Christmas?"

Sighing, Ginny picked James up and whispered to him, "your father is nuts." Carrying him downstairs, she proudly showed her son off to Harry, who had a look of disbelief on his face.

"What the hell did you dress our son in?"

"_Language,_" Ginny reprimanded. "And it's a Santa suit! You know, the fat old man that Muggle children believe to fly around the world in one night and bring them presents!"

Harry stared at his son and James stared back at him before James squealed and lunged for Harry.

"Your brothers are going to take the mickey out of you for dressing the baby like this," Harry said, grimacing as James yanked on his nose. "Ouch, mate, that hurt."

"I don't care," Ginny said defensively. "If they make fun of him, I'll just hex them."

xxxxxx

A few days after Christmas, Ginny and Hermione finally made plans to go out to lunch at a small French bistro in London and Ginny was looking forward to it. She had missed her weekly lunches with her best friend.

Ginny arrived at the restaurant right on time. Wrinkling her nose at the noise level, Ginny muttered a spell under her breath so that James wouldn't hear any of it while he slept in his pram. James was finicky about naps and Ginny would be damned if she would have her son scream his tired head off in the restaurant.

"Hi," Ginny said when she saw Hermione, hugging her tightly. "You look fantastic!"

Hermione laughed and ran a hand through her bushy hair. "Don't jinx me. Normally I feel awful. Is James sleeping?" She peered into the pram to see the baby sleep, his tiny mouth slightly open.

"_Yes_," Ginny said, collapsing into her chair with relief. "He's boycotting naps because apparently, the waking world is more entertaining than sleeping like a good baby. I just got him to go down maybe ten minutes ago and I'm hoping he'll sleep for two or three hours."

"Why won't he nap?" Hermione asked in concern, finally noticing how tired Ginny looked. "Oh Ginny, we could have rescheduled for another day if you were exhausted."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Please, I wasn't missing this for anything. He won't nap because of something called a four-month sleep regression. That's just a fancy term meaning that James will not sleep at night anymore."

Hermione winced. "What causes this?"

"From what James's Healer and my mum have told me, this regression is normal because James is developing so fast now that his sleep is disrupted." Ginny eyed James before moving his pram slightly so the waiter could come through. After ordering their drinks, both women scanned the menu in thoughtful silence.

"So how are you and Harry doing since James has been born?" Hermione asked, placing her menu on the table and looking at Ginny.

"Really well," Ginny said. "I feel that ever since James arrived, our relationship has deepened as corny as it sounds."

Hermione smiled at that. "That doesn't sound corny. It sounds sweet."

"So sweet I'm going to choke," Ginny laughed. "But yes, we're doing really well. Maybe it's because he and I are both sleep deprived."

"Do you mind me asking a personal question?" Hermione asked, her cheeks tinged pink.

Ginny had a feeling she already knew what the question would be. "Why Hermione Weasley, are you going to ask me how my sex life is?"

Hermione blushed harder.

"Hermione, you sly fox! I think my brother is rubbing off on you!" Ginny laughed even harder as Hermione sunk lower in her seat, obviously embarrassed.

"But to answer your question—it is fabulous still. The minute the Healer gave the okay, we went at it, as vulgar as that sounds."

Hermione wrinkled her nose at the thought of her best friends going 'at it' but tentatively asked, "Did it hurt?"

"_Yes_," Ginny winced and shifted uncomfortably, remembering the pain. "The Healer said that was normal because my bits were still readjusting from having a baby but it doesn't hurt now."

"You two are using protection, right?"

Ginny opened her mouth to answer but the waiter reappeared with their drinks. After ordering their food, the waiter left and Ginny looked at an expectant Hermione.

"Well?" Hermione pressed. "Are you?"

"Well aren't you nosy," Ginny remarked as she sipped on her lemonade. "But no, we are not."

Hermione looked slightly scandalized. "Why ever not?"

"I'm breastfeeding James," Ginny said, confused as to why Hermione looked so shocked. "You can't get pregnant when you're breastfeeding. It's nature's best birth control."

xxxxxx

A few days after that lunch, Ginny had a checkup at St. Mungo's and she had dragged along Harry to mind James. The last time she had taken James; he had pitched a fit in his pram because his mother hadn't been paying attention to him. So, to rectify the situation, she brought along her husband to distract their son.

"Hello, Ginny," Leah Gold said as she bustled into the room. "How are you doing?"

"Good. How's the family?" Ginny asked.

"Excellent," Leah said as she noticed Harry and the pram in the room. "Hello Harry."

Harry nodded at Leah and smiled before turning his attention back to the pram. James, not liking that he was strapped in, scrunched up his face and started to whimper.

"Is it alright if I take James out of his pram?" Harry asked Ginny. "He's getting fussy."

"Yeah," Ginny said. "I think he just wants to look around and flirt with Leah."

Soon enough, James was happily taken out of his pram and Harry settled the baby on his lap. James smiled and cooed, looking about the examination room with bright eyes.

"He's so precious," Leah sighed as she smiled at the baby. "He looks like Harry."

"He has my eyes though," Ginny pointed out. "That's the only thing that helps me remember that I birthed that child. He's all Potter."

James made eye contact with Leah and smiled before lowering his eyes and looking back up at her.

"_Flirts _like a Potter too," Ginny teased, blowing a kiss towards her husband.

The examination went smoothly and Ginny found herself impatient to leave. She had a meeting with the Harpies at four and she didn't want to be late, as Gwenog would make her run laps.

"Alright Ginny, you're pretty much done except for one thing."

"Why do I have to pee in a cup," Ginny sighed as she got off the examination table. "I'm not pregnant."

"Just to make sure," Leah said. "And it is not just for seeing if you're pregnant. Your pee can tell us a lot if your kidneys are functioning fine."

Ginny grumbled good naturedly before grabbing the cup and disappearing into the bathroom. A few minutes later, she returned and handed the plastic cup to Leah.

"I'll be right back," Leah said as she left the room.

"Honestly," Ginny said to Harry as the door closed. "Why can't they just cast a spell to see if my kidneys are working fine?"

Harry shrugged and dangled a toy in James's face. "Guess that the Muggle way is better."

Twenty minutes later, Leah returned to see Ginny holding James and Harry standing close by, making bubbles appear out of the tip of his wand to the delight of the baby. James squealed and giggled, making his parents laugh.

"Hi Leah," Ginny said as she noticed the Healer standing there. "Are my kidneys fine?"

"Yes, your kidneys are functioning just the way they ought to," Leah said. She hesitated for a moment. "Ginny, has James's eating habits changed?"

Ginny's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?" She winced as James yanked on her hair and she threw her hair over her shoulders so the baby couldn't reach.

"Has he not been as good of an eater as normal?"

Ginny frowned and was about to say no but Harry stopped her. "He did throw up right after you fed him a few days back. Remember that?"

"Oh yeah. That was a bit strange."

"Has he been throwing up since?" Leah asked.

"Just spitting up." Ginny rubbed her son's back and wondered why Leah was asking such questions.

Leah shifted her weight from foot to foot. "Have you started your period again?"

Ginny nodded. "Showed up about two months ago and I haven't had it since. I figured it was just because I've been nursing James around the clock. He's a good eater."

Leah looked at her chart before glancing at Ginny. "I tested your urine cup and it tested positive for pregnancy. "

Ginny's whole world seemed to still as Leah's words sunk in. Faintly, she could hear Harry sputtering. "That's _impossible_!" Ginny managed to get out, her heart hammering. "I'm breastfeeding! You can't get pregnant while breastfeeding!"

"Bollocks on those old wives tales," Leah sighed. "That's not true. You certainly _can _get pregnant if you're breastfeeding. Breast milk isn't a contraceptive. You're about seven weeks pregnant."

"But—but I haven't had any first trimester symptoms!" Ginny protested, refusing to believe she was pregnant. "With James I was throwing up, exhausted—"

"Every pregnancy is different," Leah said. "Healer Morris should be surprised to see you back so soon so you should make an appoint—"

CRASH.

Leah, Ginny and James turned to see Harry faint and fall to the floor.

"Amazing," Ginny said breathlessly as she stared at her unconscious husband. "He can vanquish the darkest wizard known to mankind and stare down death more times than I can count _but_ he cannot handle the news that his wife is pregnant _again_."

xxxxxx

**Well, there you have it! The last chapter to this story. Sorry to all you guys who would want a sequel with Ginny's new pregnancy, especially after this ending. That's not happening as the plot line would pretty much be the same. **

**Thank you to all you wonderful people who reviewed and read this story. You guys made my transition back to this site so fulfilling!**

**I might be posting a new story soon. Depends on if I outline enough of it out so keep a look out in the next couple weeks/months!**


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